My Own Curse
by MoonlightAssassin854
Summary: Their lives are an endless cycle of revenge and secrets and nothing is ever as it seems. There is no bigger secret than the one Sakura holds. Or is there? After going missing and choosing not to return, how can anyone truly understand her? Including Sasuke.
1. IMPORTANT Disclaimer

All right, before you get reading this story, PLEASE read this quick disclaimer! It's VERY important!

First off, I have already completed this story! So, that means I won't be bailing half way through and never finishing it! So I'll be uploading periodically! It's been 3 years since I've started this story! It took me a long time, but I finally completed it. So please continue this story; I promise you won't regret it. I worked so hard on it.

Secondly, I do not own Naruto or the characters, blabiddy blah. However, I do own the story and three of the characters: Tsubasu, Ryuu, and Daichi. Since Fanfiction doesn't like links, you'll have to go to my gallery on Deviantart to see the pictures:

MoonlightAssassin854

Next, I would like to give a special thanks to two of my best friends, Morgan and Erin. Morgan has drawn the sketches of my OC characters and the amazing profile picture for this story, and has also helped me critique my story. She is a fantastic artist, so please visit her Deviantart pages to see more of her personal art work! She also has a cosplay account, so check that out too!

Art Deviantart account: inkdaemon

Cosplay Deviantart account: redinkcliche

My other friend, Erin, pushed me to complete this story and she helped edit it to improve the storyline, grammar, etc. She also has her own Fanfiction account! So please stop by her page after you've read my story and check out her stuff!

Fanfiction: SasuSaku4eva12695


	2. Snakes in the Grass

Growing up as a ninja, I learned to always expect the unexpected. But this…this was something I never saw coming.

I had been tremendously beaten, my vision was extremely blurry, and my hearing was almost completely gone from my left ear. I could feel blood seeping out of my ear, torso, and all of my limbs. My body was covered in dirt and scratches and I had given up on wiping away the irritating dried blood at the corner of my mouth. My entire body was numb, but I continued to walk down the dark corridors as the person behind me pushed again, causing me to stagger.

"Hurry up, you bitch," he snarled, clearly getting impatient. I coughed up some blood as my knees wobbled from beneath me, and I almost collapsed. With all of my strength, I pushed the vertigo away and continued walking. Falling over would only get me beaten more, and I clearly didn't need any more of that.

Out of my right ear, I could hear the trudging of feet caused by the people behind me - about five of them, if I recalled correctly. Being beaten in the head so many times made my memory a bit blotchy. Five of them were more than excessive, considering I could barely walk. They needed me for something crucial, it seemed, because they didn't want to take any chances of me running away. That was probably their orders.

There were low gasps and whispers from the prisoners in the cells beside me as we walked by. Glancing over to them I saw fear, anger, and sympathy in their eyes. They all appeared to be shinobi that were trapped under the will of the Sound ninja. They were dirty, and also beaten. _Tools. _That was the first thing that popped into my mind. They were used to do whatever their master had commanded them to do, and if they objected, they were beaten. They had no choice in the matter. And clearly, neither did I.

I kept walking down the shadowy corridors for what seemed like hours. One foot limply followed the other as I wobbled painfully, putting more weight on my stronger, less injured leg. I could barely feel the other one now. I had lost most feeling in it, which at least made it a little less painful. If I didn't get myself healed, it would probably have to be amputated, but that was the thing I was least worried about right now. I knew exactly where we were headed - straight to the base of the hideout, straight to the man that I hated most, straight to the man who took my most precious thing away from me, straight to him.

As I saw the two, large doors in front of me getting closer, the man clutching my arms squeezed them slightly, as if he was afraid. I kept my eyes in front of me, staring at the closed entrance as we got even closer. Everyone behind me stiffened as we approached it, now only several feet away. Even I, with my body numb all over, could feel the eerie aura that emitted from the room in front of us.

Two men walked around me and opened the doors, each twice the size of myself. They creaked loudly, and the light from behind us emanated into the large room. It nearly covered half the room and I could barely see through the area. I blinked hastily, trying to recover from the blotchiness my sight produced, but I had no luck; my head throbbed even more. Once the pain subsided, I looked up, gazing into the sharp, yellow eyes that everyone around me feared so much. I glared at him and made sure that my strength remained firm. I would not let him intimidate me.

"Ahhhh, SSSSSSakura-chaaan," he slithered out sinisterly from his high-backed, velvet chair against the back wall of the room. The guards pushed me to the ground, and my knees collapsed from beneath me. He spiked his chakra, as if he was mocking me.

I glowered at the ground and tried moving my wrists, but they were still tied behind me. I flexed my hands and pulled my wrists apart as strong as I could. However, all of my strength and chakra had vanished a long time ago. Orochimaru laughed in front of me.

"Don't even try. Even if you could break through that rope, you wouldn't be able to run; you're too weak," he spat. My whole body tensed, which sent a painful sting throughout my system. I instantly regretting the subconscious action. Upon hearing a voice, I looked up and my eyes immediately gazed at the reflection of light against glass.

"Don't worry, Sakura-san, you'll grow stronger over time with the help of Orochimaru," Kabuto said, smirking as he fixed his glasses to rest higher on the bridge of his nose. I gritted my teeth, my fists tightened, and my eyes fixated on Kabuto. I wanted nothing more than to smash his face in.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Orochimaru stand up. He walked down the steps attached to his seat and stood at the base. He stared at me hungrily and licked his lips, making me shiver. I slowly felt my vision fading; I knew I was going to be unconscious soon and if not healed – dead.

"Now, you're mine!" Orochimaru shrieked as his head and neck shot out at me. I wanted so badly to move, but my body was frozen in place. I simply sat there on my knees, watching as he got closer and closer. Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain rush through my body. I screamed, but I could no longer hear anything around me. My body felt like it was on fire from the inside out, yet there was nothing that seemed to touch me besides his lingering fangs and the new, foreign chakra that seeped deeply within my veins. In mere seconds, I felt as though I was going to die from pain and exhaustion. My eyelids grew even heavier and they started to slowly shut. Before long, my body collapsed. The last thing I saw was Orochimaru's satisfied face with a smirking Kabuto standing beside him. Before I had realized anything, it was too late; I was one of Orochimaru's tools.

_Two and a half years later _

The wind blew soothingly through Naruto's hair as the sun, small and red like a ruby, rose over the gilded crown horizon. He sat in that old tree in the middle of that empty playground, faded memories like phantoms dancing about him. The swings hung in silence below him, and the jungle gym just stood there, rusting away. The light of the rising sun reflected off his headband, the emblem of his nation facing it proudly. One of his legs lay lazily over the side of the branch while the other was bent upward towards his chest, his right arm resting atop it. The bright rays of the sun reflected off his dull, blue eyes, and his lips formed into a subtle line as he stared into the beautiful scenery.

"_Oi, Naruto! Let's just sit and watch the sunrise for a minute."_

"_Ehhhh, but Sakura-chan, I wanna go get some Ichiraku! Besides, what's so special about a sunrise anyway? It happens every day!" Naruto shrieked, throwing his arms behind his head as his eyes squinted at her with contempt, as if they were saying, how dare_ _you suggest we skip out on ramen! Sakura rolled her eyes in response._

"_Naruto, you just don't understand."_

"_Ne? Understand what?" Naruto blinked in confusion. _

_Sakura sighed._

"_If you just watch the beautiful world around us once in a while, you will truly understand the importance."_

"_The importance of what? Sakura-chan, you aren't making any sense!" he retorted, getting impatient as his stomach growled quietly, though only he himself heard it. He then looked at Sakura, who was staring at the sunrise._

"_Naruto-baka, have you ever stood up high and just looked at Konoha?" she said, as images floated into her mind. "Have you ever noticed how beautiful and rich the land is? The flowers that grow from the ground? The great buildings that stand so tall? The markings of our forefathers? The heads of the precedent Hokages? Or even the children and the masses of people?" she asked. _

_Naruto blinked, but remained speechless. She turned to gaze at him. "It's then, once you really see the beauty of the land you swore to defend, that your determination to protect your homeland and your beloved ones becomes greater."_

His eyes softened as the sun continued to rise over the horizon. He held in the unwanted tears as his fists tightened.

_I understand now, Sakura-chan._

"Oi! Naruto!" He heard a voice call from beneath him. He instantly blinked away the tears and looked down to see Shikamaru looking up at him. Naruto raised an eyebrow and leaned towards him.

"Eh? Shikamaru?" he asked, and the boy below him nodded.

"Hai, Naruto, we're needed in Hokage-sama's office," he said with a concerned look on his face. Naruto blinked.

"Ne, is there something wrong?" he asked.

Shikamaru kept his hands in his pockets and stared at Naruto's expression, not exactly knowing how to put his thoughts into words.

"Sort of," Shikamaru started off. He closed his eyes for a minute as his head lowered slightly, but then it automatically rose and his eyes shot open to look at him. "Uchiha Sasuke has returned," he simply said. Naruto's eyes widened.

"Wh-What did you just say?" he stuttered. Shikamaru sighed. This was so troublesome.

"You heard me; Uchiha Sasuke has returned. He's at the Hokage Tower right now," he said. Naruto sat there for a few seconds, frozen in place. After a moment of battling with himself, his dull eyes brightened and he jumped down from the tree to land beside Shikamaru.

"Nani?! What are we waiting for?! Let's go!" Naruto yelled while running ahead of him. Shikamaru reached out to him in instant reaction, but he stopped halfway and replaced his yell with a sigh. Even at the age of eighteen, he seemed to act as if he was ten.

* * *

Naruto opened the door with a bang as it hit the wall behind it. He rushed in, almost tripping over his own two feet. He bent over, trying to catch his breath. He quickly regained his composure as he stared at the scene in front of him. Tsunade, Kakashi, Sasuke, and several ANBU were gathered around in Tsunade's office, staring at him. However, Naruto's eyes were only fixated on Sasuke.

"T-Temeee?!" Naruto shouted in surprise with widened eyes. Sasuke rolled his own eyes in response.

"Tch, Dobe. You're still loud and obnoxious," he stated with his hands in his pockets.

"B-But, you're here – in Konoha –"

"Obviously," he stated, cutting him off in a sarcastic tone, gazing at him with emotionless eyes. They sat in silence with one another for a few seconds before Naruto continued.

"But, why?" he asked, not knowing what else to say. Shikamaru walked in suddenly and sighed, looking over at Tsunade.

"Sorry for the outburst, Hokage-sama," he said instantly. Tsunade ignored him and rested her head on her intertwined fingers, staring only at Naruto, as if guessing his next action.

"He killed his brother, and he wishes to rejoin Konoha," Tsunade intervened. The room hung in a deep silence, everyone not making the slightest move, watching Naruto's next move. However, his expression was unreadable as he stood there with his head hung low.

To everyone's surprise, Naruto came up to Sasuke and punched him straight in the jaw.

Sasuke stumbled backwards, landing against Tsunade's unstable desk. It rattled beneath his weight, almost giving in from the brute force. As Sasuke propped up against it to hold himself from falling, he looked in Naruto's eyes to see fury and anger. However, his face remained passive and his countenance indecipherable.

"You left us," Naruto started off. "You left us and never even glanced back." Sasuke never moved a muscle as his ranting continued, continuing to hold his body against the desk as Naruto's words and emotions poured out like streaming water. "No matter how many times we tried to get you to come back home, you never listened! Not once! You caused us so much pain and you didn't even care!" he finished as a single tear slid down his cheek and his teeth gritted together. After a few seconds of silence, Sasuke pushed off of Tsunade's desk to regain his composure. Naruto looked into Sasuke's eyes to see regret and sadness.

"I'm sorry," he said whole-heartedly as he pushed his hands uncomfortably in his pockets, not knowing what to do with them. Everyone looked over to him in surprise at his remorseful apology. Naruto stood up straight before wiping the tear that fell down his face. He then walked over to Sasuke, embracing him in a brotherly hug, catching Sasuke off guard.

"Welcome home, Teme," Naruto said. Slowly but surely, Sasuke wrapped his arms around him, returning the hug.

"Tch, Dobe. You haven't changed a bit," he remarked. Naruto laughed happily while pulling back his arms.

"Ne, ne! Neither have you, Teme; you're still a bastard," he said smiling ear to ear. Shikamaru almost smiled, seeing the happiness that consumed him. Tsunade noticed the same thing and she closed her eyes in content. Kakashi stared at the two, a small grin growing under his mask.

_Good to have you back, Naruto._

"Sasuke, why didn't you come back sooner if you killed Itachi two years ago?" Tsunade asked him, immediately getting back to their original conversation before they were so rudely interrupted. Sasuke turned back around and stared at her with emotionless eyes, a tint of regret and pain showing through that the Hokage could barely catch.

"I helped Team Hebi with their tasks," he started. "I thought I was going to die along with Itachi, so I didn't plan what I was going to do afterwards." Tsunade absently nodded and stared back from him to Kakashi, as if sending him secret signals. Kakashi nodded in response. She then looked back at Sasuke. Naruto and Shikamaru remained quiet, along with the forgotten ANBU that stood in the back of the room.

"I see," she said. She wrote down a few things and then straightened out the paper work. "Uchiha Sasuke, without the elders consent, I am not allowed to position you as a shinobi or a citizen in this village," she started off. "I will establish a date for you to go on trial with the elders." She grabbed a set of keys from a drawer in her desk and threw them at Sasuke, which he caught easily. "Until then, you will live in an empty apartment complex close to Naruto's. You will be watched under ANBU members at all times and you will not be permitted to use chakra. If you leave the village without permission, you willbe killed. Do I make myself clear?" she stated in a strict tone. Sasuke nodded.

"Hn," he replied. Tsunade then looked at Naruto.

"Show him where he will be living," she said. He smiled widely and ran towards the door.

"Let's go, Teme! We have a lot to do!" he said while rushing out. Sasuke sighed, put his hands in his pockets, and walked out the door.

"Tch, Dobe. Slow down," he said, walking down the hallway of the Hokage Tower. Once they both exited, Tsunade looked at the ANBU.

"Watch him at alltimes. Understood?" she stated strictly. They all bowed to her.

"Hai!" they said before they vanished. Kakashi and Shikamaru were left standing in front of her. Her strict and serious manner remained.

"Shikamaru, I want you to inform the other Jounin. They need to know that he has returned," she said. He bowed to her.

"Hai, Hokage-sama," he said before walking out and shutting the door behind him, knowing that she needed to talk with Kakashi alone. Kakashi was currently leaning against the wall in a lazy manner as his eye was closed. Tsunade, also, closed her eyes and sighed before speaking.

"What do you think of all this, Kakashi?" she asked him. Kakashi opened his eye and stared at the ground in front of him, deep in thought.

"Something in him has changed," he said, not knowing how else to explain it. She nodded in agreement.

"Hai; I felt it too," she said before spinning in her chair and watching the sunrise high in the sky.

_Maybe, just maybe, he never severed those bonds._

* * *

"Yosh!" Naruto said while plopping down on the couch in Sasuke's new living room. Sasuke rolled his eyes and sat down on the chair across from the couch, clearly tired from the long reunion he just encountered.

"_Sasuke! You're back!" Ino exclaimed._

"_Oi, Uchiha. So you finally decided to come back, eh?" Kiba asked with a smirk on his face._

"_Hn. Uchiha," Neji exclaimed. "It's good to have you back."_

"_Yosh! You're so youthful, Sasuke-san!" Lee yelled with a bright smile on his face._

Sasuke let out a sigh. It had taken hours for everyone to stop yapping and finally let him come home to rest. Although, he still had the Dobe to deal with. He looked up at him as he was laying down, staring at the ceiling, deep in thought. It was then that he really realized how much he had grown, physically and mentally; he himself had grown too. They were both eighteen now, with new ambitions, and even some old ones. But, something had been secretly bothering Sasuke during the reunion.

"Oi, Naruto," Sasuke said. Naruto blinked and looked over at him.

"Eh? What is it, Teme?" he asked.

"Where's Sakura?" he asked. Naruto stared at him for a moment. He sat up and leaned on his knees to stare at the ground, followed by a sudden, strong tension that filled the room. Sasuke saw him tighten his fists and he even heard a stutter in his voice.

"I don't know," he said simply. Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean, 'you don't know'?" Sasuke asked questionably, yet strictly. Naruto put his hands over his face and scrunched his hands and nose.

"She - She disappeared two and a half years ago." The room suddenly became cold and Sasuke just stared at him emotionlessly, but many thoughts were running through his mind. His statement slowly sunk in.

"Disappear? How could she just disappear?!" Sasuke shouted slightly, standing to his feet. Naruto flinched at his sudden outburst, staring at him before he turned his head in shame.

"Someone took her."

"_Here ya go, Sakura-chan!" _

"_You didn't have to walk me home, Naruto," she said while walking up the stairs, reaching for the keys in her kunai pouch. Naruto smiled brightly with his hands behind his head. _

"_I know, I just like to know you made it home safely! Besides," he started before leaning in cautiously. "There's a lot of creepos out here!" Naruto exclaimed, whispering the last part as if it was top secret. A laugh escaped Sakura's lips in response._

"_Well, I'm sure I can handle myself, Naruto, but thanks for being so concerned," she said while opening the door to her home. "I'm gonna go eat dinner with my parents. Goodnight, Naruto!" she smiled. He smiled back and began walking away._

"_Goodnight, Sakura-chan!" he said as she closed the door behind her. He began walking in the other direction towards Ichiraku, where Iruka was waiting for him._

"After she had not been seen for almost a week, ANBU infiltrated her home once she didn't come to the rendezvous point for the next mission. Her parents were found dead and she was gone," Naruto said sadly, stuttering every other word. Tears filled his eyes, but he refused to let them fall. Sasuke stood there in silence, at a loss for words.

"Who took her?" he asked angrily. Naruto, surprised at his concern, ignored the confusion he was feeling and shook his head.

"We don't know," Naruto stated simply. When the criminals came, there was no evidence – no link to who it might be or what direction they might have went in. They came prepared and they were skilled. Another silence consumed fell over the room.

"_Sasuke-kun!" _ Sasuke heard a voice scream in pain in his head. His eyes squeezed together and his fists tightened before he punched the wall beside him. Naruto flinched in response. Sasuke's burning eyes bore into Naruto's.

"How could you let this happen?!" Sasuke screamed while grabbing Naruto's collar. Naruto just stared at him in awe as he was barely standing on his toes, eye to eye with Sasuke. "Don't you remember the promise we made?!" he screamed again. Naruto's eyes widened at a flashback.

"_Naruto, listen to me," Sasuke said as the sand tightened around Sakura's form. "You have to save Sakura," he continued as Gaara tried to regain his composure from Naruto's last attack. Naruto stared at him in awe. "If it's the last thing you do." Naruto gasped. "Once you've got her, I want you to take her, and flee as fast as you can. It's all up to you." _

"_S-Sasuke –"_

"_Promise me, Naruto. Promise me that you'll protect her; that you'll always protect her," Sasuke said, looking at him determinedly. They both knew at that moment that it was more than just mere words. Naruto's eyes glistened before looking straight into his eyes. Naruto nodded in response. _

"_I promise," he agreed._

Naruto's eyes widened like saucers at the recurring memory. His lips, barely parted, could not produce the slightest sound. Sasuke lightened his grip, Naruto landing on his feet uneasily against the cold, hardwood floor, and an echo traveling silently through the noiseless room.

Sasuke turned his back, his fists tightening and teeth gritting – his emblem, however, remained to be the only thing seen by Naruto.

Naruto replayed the flashback like a broken record, the inaudible sound of the stylus seemingly scratching against the metal. Suddenly, anger overcame him, his finger pointed towards the Uchiha fan.

"What about you, huh?!" Naruto shouted angrily while looking at his back. "You haven't exactly been around to protect her! You promised to protect her too –"

"I never swore to protect her," Sasuke proclaimed, playing back the same memory. "We promised you would protect her, not me," he strictly said. Naruto gritted his teeth before staring at his back. Another thought instantly popped into his mind and his mouth again, became agape.

"Then, you knew - even back then," Naruto said sadly, gazing back at the ground. Sasuke turned around to look at him. "You knew, even back then that you would be leaving; that you would abandon us. That's why you never promised to protect her," Naruto said. Sasuke gazed the other way immediately and they both stood there in silence. Naruto shut his eyes, no longer wanting to see him. A scoff escaped his throat, turning for the door and slamming it behind him, Sasuke not even mumbling the slightest word towards him as he made his exit. There were no more words to be said.

* * *

The moon hung high in the dark, night sky. The wind blew softly, a few clouds hanging over the winded trees. The forest was silent, except for the wild predators that hunted in the darkness, looking for their prey. A distant owl could be heard, if only listening for a moment. The mice, rabbits, and other small creatures silently roamed the night, looking for food and means of escape from their enemies. They all suddenly vanished when four different figures were heard jumping from tree to tree not too far from their location. The hooded figures did not even glance their way.

"Oi, when can we take a break?" one of the hooded figures asked obnoxiously. The figure closest to him, who had two blades located on his back, replied to him.

"Quit complaining," he said strictly. The first figured rolled his eyes and crossed his arms as they continued jumping.

"Tch," he snarled. The third figure looked over to them.

"We'll be stopping soon. There should be a cave shortly up ahead," he said with a soft, yet contrasting strict tone. The fourth figure nodded.

"Aa," said the other, more feminine voice. They continued their journey ahead, not even giving a glimpse to the smaller, almost nonexistent beings around them. And just like that, they were gone in a flash.


	3. If Looks Could Kill

Two weeks after his return, he was brought before the council to be put in a trial. After days upon days upon weeks of overworked evidence and too long testimonies, the council themselves were even tiring. The whole thing had been double and triple checked, every scrap of information abused like a coffee machine in an office. But nothing incriminating could be found.

Sasuke Uchiha was about to walk a free man.

Maybe it was a good thing, they had decided, shrugging their shoulders and writing off a few more papers, a good thing for all those that once held him dear. Even the promising young man Naruto had accepted him and all his intentions, whatever they may be, near instantly. Lord only knew how the group of youths would react should the young ravenette be cleaved away from them as soon as he was returned.

He even offed a few men in red-clouded cloaks for them, and even a nasty snake that had eluded them far too long. Or, so they thought.

"_So, what happened to Orochimaru?" the leader of the council asked._

"_He was sealed in a genjutsu by the Sword of Totsuka for all of eternity." _

"_Interesting." _

No one questioned it. Even the sanin was a mortal, no matter how many jutsus he mastered.

They still could not let him go without some sort of punishment, however, since he had been AWOL for an astounding five years.

He was restricted from using any chakra and could not be enrolled into a team until further notice—though only for a few months, perhaps. ANBU members were assigned to watch him, to make sure he wasn't trying anything tricky. Although Tsunade and Kakashi were confident in his actions and motives, the council trumped them in authority and said it was "only for the time being." His courtship with vengeance was over and he had tied the knot with blood and pain. There was simply no longer a reason for him to be a threat. However, like some of the council members, most of Konoha's citizens did not fully trust him.

* * *

Sasuke walked down the streets of Konoha with his hands lazily lying in his pockets. He could feel the stares that engraved themselves into his skull, as if it would kill him dead on the spot. However, he kept his head held high; understanding his story would become unprevailed for those who did not know him.

Time travel was always alluring for him. Merely in a blink of an eye, a person could be reanimated in a designated period and alter the dimensions of reality upon one's choosing. It was something so simple, yet so complex that it had never been achieved before. He thought about these things often.

If he could have relived a specific time, he would have gone back ten years ago to that bloody massacre that has carved its way into the textbooks of history. Though, he may not have changed a simple aspect, simply just going back to view the event with a different mindset. If he had, the reasons behind the slaughter would have been understood, yet known in secret, that even the prodigious Itachi would not have even known.

His choices would not have stopped there; he would have continued to live his life once over again where he knew what to expect, what to know when he turned the corner. Upon this life, there would be no vengeance, no anger that would wash through him when he saw those Sharingan eyes staring back at him, because the truth had already revealed itself in another time and there would be no reason to repeat the wrongdoings he had once done before.

He would stare into those eyes full of remorse and hope, thinking of things that had been said and done in other universe. He would tell him the truth behind his travels through the space time continuum and how Itachi's ultimate plan had been contrite and unnecessary. He would have said anything to get his loving brother back.

He would have been the friend that Naruto needed when he was secluded and ridiculed by many for the reasons of the Kyuubi. Sasuke, if anything, needed it more than Naruto did, to prevent the insanity that would inevitably consumed him. Though it would never be admitted aloud, he did want someone there with him – to help him grow stronger, physically and mentally. He had gone through that once before, and it had driven him closer to the edge.

He would have been the student that Kakashi so desperately tried to grow, using those powers to protect his home and those he cared most for. He wanted to see those eyes look towards him in a sense of accomplishment and pride; the look that he had never received.

_I would have protected Sakura, _he subconsciously stated, a cringe coming thereafter. Knowing that she would have been taken, he would have walked her in that day, fully prepared for what was going to come. He would have done everything he could to make sure that she was safe so that he would have no regrets – to be the guy that Sakura had made him out to be, though he had to become it the hard way.

The Uchiha clan turned towards the darkness, letting Death use them as a puppet to their master plan, leaving them as a disgrace in the eyes of others. If he had another chance, he would have rebuilt the domain that had taken them ages and ages of creating. Maybe the civilians still would not have understood the suffering; maybe they would still glare at him as he walked down these rugged, dirtied streets. However, at least he would not have deserved the looks – he would have known better. As he walked down these streets now, he knew that they had all the reason hate him with all of their beings, and he wouldn't hold it against them.

However, he did not have the ability to return to the past. So until then, he would deal with the consequences of his past decisions, continuing to contemplate exactly what it would be like if he could just take that twist in time.

_If only._

They say to not regret mistakes, because those mistakes are the ultimate transformation to become a stronger person. However, they never specified the importance of becoming stronger if there is no one left to protect.

He scoffed, ridding his mind of the thought as his attention traveled to other events – the trial that was held against his head.

"_Isn't there a third member of Team 7?" the leader of the council asked, wanting another witness to come to the stands. Everyone's faces immediately gloomed and Tsunade simply glared at the council, annoyed with them bringing up such a touchy subject._

"_She was unable to come today, sir," she almost spat. The leader immediately tensed and coughed, attempting to relieve the growing lump in his throat._

"_Fine then, our next witness shall be…"_

He could not quite remember what happened after that. His memories of his old, pink-haired teammate were too deeply engraved in his mind. He could remember everything as if it were yesterday. Her cheerful smile as she walked towards him every morning before training with Team 7 -

"_Ohayo, Sasuke-kun!"_

The way her eyes gleamed in the sunlight when fear and concern spread across her soft, pale face -

"_Sasuke-kun! __Daijoubu?"_

The way she always sacrificed herself to save him, even if it meant death.

The thought forced Sasuke to cease his steps. Death. They had no idea where she was now. Maybe she was dead? If he had been here, could he have saved her? Did that make all the difference?

Sasuke shut his eyes, continuing his strides down the back alleys towards his apartment. This was not his fault. She should have been stronger. Naruto should have been there and kept the promise they made.

It was Naruto's fault; he should have been taking care of her while he was gone. Sakura was his responsibility and her disappearance was completely his fault. Sasuke should not feel guilty.

So, why was he?

"Oi, Uchiha," a voice called from behind him.

He stopped, turning his body to see Shikamaru and Kiba facing him. Shikamaru was casually leaning on one side with his hands in his pockets, a cigar hanging out of his mouth. Kiba was standing next to him with that cocky smirk on his face.

"We're wanted in the Hokage's office," Shikamaru stated lazily. Sasuke stared at them with an emotionless expression before he nodded, walking with them towards the Hokage Tower. It was at that moment that Sasuke finally realized he had thrown something very valuable away.

* * *

"Sasuke-teme's going on the mission too?!" Naruto asked excitedly. Kiba, Shikamaru, Naruto, Sasuke, and Neji were all standing in front of the Hokage's desk as she went through some paperwork, as if looking for something she had lost.

"Aa. The council and I have agreed that Sasuke needs to prove his loyalty to the village and go on his first mission," she stated, pulling out a scroll and looking at the five men in front of her. They all intently watched her, listening to her next directions. She leaned back in her chair, relaxing. "This is a B ranked mission," she continued.

They all nodded in response.

She opened the scroll she was holding, which turned out to be a map of all the Ninja Nations. She pointed to a specific place that was unfamiliar with most of the shinobi in the room. "This is the Country of Earth. There is a little village right across the border," tapping a small dot of red ink on the scroll. "Some rogue ninja infiltrated the village and committed some major crimes. They've been stealing, trading illegal drugs, and so on and so forth. I need you to go there and arrest these shinobi."

"Why aren't they just sending their own shinobi?" Naruto asked.

"It's not a shinobi village, it's a civilian homeland. Basically, these rogue ninja found it adaptable for them to use this as a major trading point since there is no one to defy them. So the residents of the village requested our services," she explained.

Kiba put one hand on his hip. "Then why are you sending so many of us?" he asked questionably. She nodded in response.

"Good question," she started off. "There are a lot of rogue ninjas infiltrating the village, so after you've arrested them, there are going to be a lot of illegal drugs that need to be transported back to us and removed," she said while holding out the scroll to Neji. "Hyuga Neji will be your leader, with Nara Shikamaru as your co-leader. Understood?" she said strictly.

"Understood," Neji repeated in recognition, with Shikamaru nodding in response.

"Got it," Kiba said excitedly, causing Akamaru to bark.

"Yoshhh!" Naruto cheered, clearly thrilled for the upcoming battles ahead.

"Aa," Sasuke finished. Tsunade rested her head on her intertwined fingers and stared at Sasuke, as if she were sending him secret signals.

"Remember what I said, Uchiha," she said. He nodded his head, but did not verbally reply. Tsunade then leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. "You are dismissed. Leave immediately," she finished. Naruto grinned from ear to ear and turned around, heading straight for the door.

"Yes! Let's go!" he said, storming out. Shikamaru rolled his eyes.

"Troublesome," Shikamaru said, following him. They all exited the office, mentally preparing themselves for the mission ahead. Kiba closed the door behind them as Tsunade sat there staring at the door.

"He won't run off," she heard a voice say behind her. But, she knew exactly who it was and chose not to look back. She simply kept her gaze on the door in front of her, deep in thought about the Uchiha.

"I know," she replied to Kakashi. He was leaning against the window sill, reading that damned, orange book of his. "It's just when it comes down to it, I hope he makes the right decision," she continued. He simply chuckled.

"He will. I have a feeling both Naruto and Sasuke will make the right choices," he replied. Tsunade tightened her intertwined fingers, causing them to go white, and bit her lip, almost causing blood to form.

"If Sakura were here, she'd keep them in line." Kakashi looked up from his book and stared at the back of her head, suddenly becoming speechless. After a few seconds of silence, he put his book away and stared at the clouds in the sky.

"She's out there, somewhere." Tsunade's eyes shut in frustration.

"_What's going on here?!" Tsunade asked, rushing up to some nearby Jounin that surrounded Sakura's home. The Jounin turned to her, surprised at her outburst and sudden appearance outside of the Hokage Tower. _

"_H-Hokage-sama! Uhm," one of them stuttered, immediately stiffening once realizing who the house belonged to. Tsunade grabbed him by his vest and yanked him off the ground, glaring with the intent to kill. _

"_Where is Sakura?!" she shrieked angrily, letting her temper to get the best of her. The other Jounin almost panicked._

"_H-Hokage-sama…W-We don't know," he stammered, not knowing what else to say. She dropped the man in her grasp and looked at the other._

"_What do you mean you don't know?! What is the meaning of this?! Who infiltrated her home?!" she shouted. The Jounin was about to answer, but a few ANBU members appeared beside the Hokage._

"_Hokage-sama, both of the parents were found murdered, and Haruno Sakura is nowhere to be found," they replied calmly. Tsunade stood there, speechless, staring at the two shinobi. _

"_Who did this?" Tsunade demanded. The two ANBU members looked at each other, and then back at the Hokage._

"_So far, there were neither traces nor evidence of who committed the crime, but we are still searching," he finished. The female beside him nodded. Tsunade held her breath, trying to calm herself._

"_And Sakura?"_

"_It was as if she vanished in thin air."_

Tsunade kept her eyes closed, recalling the memory of what happened almost three years ago.

"She was my student too, you know," Kakashi replied. Tsunade flinched, tightening her fists until her fingers turned an unnatural, pale color. She slammed them down on the desk angrily, her nose flaring and lips quivering.

"How can you be so calm when you know that she could be dead?!" Tsunade shouted. Kakashi stared at her through his one eye, almost emotionlessly.

"She is my student, and I know what she is capable of. She's a lot like you and Naruto; she's too stubborn to die." The words seemed to hit her as though they had physically slapped her in the face. She turned back around and closed her eyes, resting her head on top of her palms.

"I hope you're right."

* * *

Another rogue ninja jumped through the trees frantically, desperately charging in the other direction. He was bloody and beaten, yet surprisingly still had enough energy to move his legs. He heard of the screams of his companions behind him, spurring him on further. His whole body felt heavy and hot as the fear coursed through his body like a wave. He inwardly knew that he wasn't going to get away, but his feet wouldn't stop running, he had to press on further. Another piercing scream was heard, which was his beloved female companion. This caused him to stop in his tracks and turn around with widened eyes.

"Kimi-"

He was pushed up against a tree, the back of his head scrapping against the bark as a forearm held him up by his throat, his feet dangling helplessly. He flinched, not even feeling the presence of the ninja before he was attacked. The pain of the kunai against his throat caused him to flinch, blood now dripping down to his chest. He opened his eyes to stare at the hooded figure in front of him, her eyes hidden from his sight.

"Tell me what I want to know," the strong, feminine voice demanded, pushing the kunai deeper against his throat, a gasp escaping his throat in fear. He struggled, but her forearm was too strongly held against him.

"P-Please! Don't kill me! I-I'll tell you what you want to know!" he stuttered frenetically. Her stance did not change.

"Where is Orochimaru's current hideout?" she asked strictly.

"O-Orochimaru…? H-He died years ago! Uchiha Sasuke –"

"He isn't dead. Where is he?" she asked again, pushing her forearm against his throat with such strength that he was forced to struggle for air.

"I-I don't know! Please! Let me go!" he pleaded. By the look on his face, he was telling the truth.

She closed her eyes.

"Tch," she spat, letting him drop to the ground, his body falling like a rag doll. She turned, placing her kunai away in her pouch, her strides continuing as she walked in the opposite direction. The ninja gasped for air and stared at the ground, growing very angry. He glared at her and quietly slipped a kunai from the pouch located on his thigh. He rose to his feet, jumping towards her with his weapon held high.

"Ah!" he yelled, the battle cry echoing, the dagger thrusted at her skull. His movements were halted when another hooded figure appeared in front of him, piercing his heart with two blades protruding from his sleeves. The rogue ninja widened his eyes in pain, blood squirting from his lips. "Te…me…" he whispered, his corpse falling to the ground. The hooded figure pulled back his weapons, wiping the blood on the tree next to him before they retracted into his sleeves.

"Oi! You better be more careful! If it wasn't for me, you'd be dead!" he said cockily. The feminine figure simply rolled her eyes.

"He wouldn't have touched me," she replied. Before he could retort anything sarcastically, two other figures appeared in front of them.

"Anything, Ryuu?" the woman asked one of the hooded figures. Ryuu pulled back his hood, enabling air to flutter through his messy, maroon locks.

"No. They all seemed to think that Uchiha Sasuke killed him off three years ago," the man said, piercing, silver eyes gleaming at her. Though he was a ninja, his skin seemed somewhat flawless.

"I'm not too surprised. No one out here is going to know about Orochimaru; it's too far away from the Sound Village," the man said. He raked a wither leaf from his white hair, which completely contrasted his muddy, dark skin. His origins, ostensibly obvious, traced back to Kumogakure Village: The Village Hidden in the Clouds. He adjusted the gauze around his right eye before he retied the dark blue bandana, securing it around his head. His fingers unintentionally stroked the scar located horizontally across his nose, feeling the permanent scar tissue against his rough, calloused fingers. The female responded to him.

"Tsubasu, for all we know, Orochimaru could be in hiding out here. Besides, we could get rewarded for killing the rogue ninja that were illegally selling in their village. We need some cash," she responded back to the dark skinned man as he put his two blades back into their sheaths. The other hooded, more obnoxious figure pouted.

"But Sakura-chaaaan," he started out, pulling off his own hood to shake the dirt out of his black, shaggy hair that barely covered his light blue, piercing eyes. He whipped his ponytail out from the hood to place it more in a comfortable position on his back. His head turned back up, staring at the girl in front of him with a frown. "This place is so boring, when are we going back?" he asked again. Sakura rolled her eyes from beneath her hood.

"Daichi, stop complaining. We'll leave as soon as we get as much information as we can get on Orochimaru and after we restock on supplies. We're running low," she said, looking towards the end of the forest before glancing back at her comrades. "Now put your hoods back on, we're almost in the village."

* * *

Kiba scrunched his nose in disgust.

Shikamaru and Neji automatically noticed his reaction and looked at him.

"What's wrong?" Shikamaru asked. Sasuke and Naruto also turned.

"I smell blood," Kiba responded. Akamaru barked in response. They continued jumping from tree to tree. Neji, who was in the middle of the line, made his way to the front past Shikamaru, Kiba, and Akamaru and activated his Byakugan.

"Byakugan!" he whispered as the veins around his eyes stuck out and chakra ran throughout his head. Using this Kekkei Genkai, he looked past all the trees until he saw many dead bodies of rogue shinobi lying on the ground covered in their own blood. Neji stared at the deadly scene far in front of them.

"There was a battle. There are a lot of dead shinobi up ahead," he declared. Shikamaru looked at him.

"How many?" he asked while jumping from one branch to another. He saw his head slightly look from side to side, counting.

"Twenty-seven," he announced.

"Twenty-seven?!" Naruto yelled. "Who killed all those shinobi?" he asked.

"I guess we're about to find out," Kiba replied as they jumped even faster through the trees. Once they came to their destination, they landed on the ground, gazing at all the dead bodies that surrounded them. Naruto almost barfed from the smell of blood that drenched the area.

"Someone clearly got here before we did," Shikamaru stated. Sasuke merely nodded in response.

"Aa," he said. Kiba closed his eyes and sniffed the area. His eyes opened, looking forward towards the village up ahead.

"How long have these bodies been here?" Neji asked, standing up from a dead body.

"About three days," he replied.

"We need to find the killers and find out what their intentions are." Neji turned to Kiba again. "How many were there?"

"Four," he said while sniffing the area, as if looking as to what direction they were heading to. Neji watched him.

"What direction did they go?"

"Straight to the village," Kiba replied, causing Akamaru to bark in agreement. Naruto stepped in front, holding his fist high in determination.

"Yosh! Let's go!" he said, walking forward triumphantly. Sasuke grabbed him by the collar, clearly annoyed.

"Dobe, calm down," he said, dragging him back a few steps. Naruto almost yelped in surprise, but then he pouted.

"Ne?! Stop it, Teme. We have asses to kick!"

"Not without a plan," Shikamaru said, examining the bodies around us. He bent down towards one, followed by Neji, as if they were thinking the same thing. "These are very strong ninja we're dealing with," he continued. Naruto blinked in confusion as Sasuke let the collar of his shirt go, causing him to slump.

"Eh? What's so special about them?" he asked. Kiba also turned to look at them. Shikamaru grazed his finger over the vital point that he had been struck at.

"These shinobi didn't take very long fighting. They struck deadly points; killing them instantly. They clearly know the human body and its effects," he said, standing up, along with Neji. The Byakugan user continued to look at the dead body.

"These ninja are at least A-ranked, if not S-ranked. They carefully planned their attack, and it clearly succeeded," Neji said, turning towards their destination. Naruto immediately shook it off.

"Yosh! A challenge!" he replied. Shikamaru rolled his eyes.

"Troublesome fool," he said before walking forward and bending down towards the ground. He signaled for the rest of them to gather around him, which they immediately did. "All right, just in case they come to ambush us, we need to form a line," he said before picking up a stick and drawing stick figures. After a few seconds of careful planning, he wrote names next to the figures. "Kiba, you will lead in the front with Akamaru. I will be behind him. Sasuke and Naruto, you two will be behind me in case they decide to attack us from the sides. Neji, you will be last to make sure they don't ambush us from the rear," he said, putting down the stick. "Is that clear?" Everyone nodded their heads. With that they stood up. Shikamaru made a hand signal.

"Go." As Kiba took off in the front, he looked at Akamaru, who was thinking the same thing as him.

_One of the scents is so familiar…but, I can't put my finger on it._

* * *

Sakura slung her backpack over her shoulder, immediately looking at her comrades, who were clearly eager to leave. They were standing there with everything packed, standing up, and almost facing towards the door.

"Are we ready?" Tsubasu asked almost a little too willingly. Sakura shook her head before pulling up her hood and walking to the door.

"I need to go get something before we head out. I'll be right back," she said while opening the door, walking out of the room.

"How about I go with –"

But Ryuu was too late, for Sakura had already shut the door behind her with a soft click. This caused Daichi to laugh hysterically in his face.

"Denied," he spat before laughing again. Ryuu glared at him.

"Whatever," he said, looking the other way while Tsubasu slung off his backpack and laid back down on the bed.

"Guess we'll be here for at least another hour," he exclaimed while staring through the window and up at the clouds. Daichi immediately stopped laughing and pouted heavily.

"Ne?! An hour?! I wanna leave this shitty place!" he exclaimed rather loudly. Tsubasu shrugged, not removing his gaze from the clouds above.

"You know women and their shopping. She could take hours."

"Hours?! Hell nah – we'll leave without her," Daichi exclaimed, causing Ryuu to roll his eyes again.

"You'll be the only one leaving, then. Just be patient; she'll be back soon," he said. Daichi huffed before plopping on the other bed.

"Tchhh. Whatever!" he exclaimed, placing his hands behind his head and closing his eyes. Ryuu also gazed at the clouds, wondering what she could possibly be doing.

* * *

Sakura walked through the small streets of the village. She wasn't very fond of this village, but there were a lot of polite civilians who welcomed them in to stay for a few days. The streets were very overcrowded, filled with people of all ages, from children to adults and elders, walking the streets without any stress or fear of any rogue shinobi, thanks to them. Sakura made her way around a few children once seeing her destination, striding over to the elder lady at the marketplace. Once the lady saw her approaching, her face brightened dramatically, waving.

"Ahh! It's so nice to see you!" she said before looking at the bag over her shoulder. "I see you're leaving soon?" Sakura nodded politely in response.

"Yes ma'am. My friends and I are about to leave after I gather some food for our journey," she said with a warm smile across her face. The elder lady kept smiling in response and looked over at the fruit she was selling.

"Go on! Take anything you want! On the house," she exclaimed. Sakura almost gasped in response.

"Oh no, I could never do that. I know you are short on food with all of these people in this village – "

"No, go on dear. Besides, we owe you for getting rid of those nasty rogue ninja! Take as much as you want," she exclaimed. Sakura smiled warmly in response and looked at the fruit in front of her.

"Arigatou."

"Anytime; do not be a stranger to this village. You're always welcome in our home," she finished. As Sakura was about to pick up a fruit, she immediately froze when sensing multiple, upcoming chakras not too far from where she was standing. She closed her eyes and concentrated on where they were located, listening in on their conversation.

"Can you smell them?"

"I can't; there are too many smells. But, they're definitely still here somewhere. Akamaru, see if you can track down one of the four scents." A bark was heard in response.

At this, Sakura glanced at the figures. Her eyes immediately widened.

_Oh no._

"Aaaaa! Can't we get some food first?! I'm so hungry."

"When we get back to Konoha you can eat all you want."

"Hmph! So demanding."

"Quit complaining and look for those ninja."

"Bark!"

"Tch, Dobe."

"What was that, Teme?!"

_Sasuke…? _She turned back, immediately looking at the elderly woman and bowing in respect.

"Gomen, Kama-baa-sama!" she exclaimed before jumping over the food stand and hiding underneath it, immediately hiding her chakra signature.

"Aa! Food!" Naruto said, running up to the stand, examining all the fruits. The elderly lady was still surprised, but quickly figured out what she was doing and hid her shocked expression with a fake smile.

"Ahh! Is there anything you need?" she asked the boy as the rest of the Konoha nin walked up. Neji nodded as Naruto rummaged through the fruit.

"Yes; we're the Konoha ninja that you requested to arrest the rogue shinobi, but it seems that the job was already taken care of," he exclaimed. Kiba and Akamaru sniffed. The elder woman smiled.

"Ahh. Yes, well, I'm very sorry for the inconvenience. You don't have to stay any longer," she said, clearly trying to shoo them out. Kiba looked suspiciously at the elderly woman.

"Who's behind the fruit stand?" he demanded. The other four shinobi stopped what they were doing and immediately looked at him. Kama paled.

"I-I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to ask you to leave," she exclaimed strongly. Kiba took a step forward, attempting to look over the cart.

"Ma'am –"

Quicker than the normal eye could catch, the figure swung her body over the stand, leveling her weight with her hand on top of the stand and propelling her foot forward until it met with Kiba's face. He flinched in surprise and pain, falling back approximately twenty feet, his back scraping against the concrete.

She landed on her feet, pushing chakra into them while running as fast as she could. She jumped over Kiba and continued to sprint.

"Oi! Stop!" Shikamaru yelled, chasing her.

"Mate!" Naruto yelled, following Shikamaru, the rest ensuing. Akamaru stopped by Kiba, quickly nudging his nose into his side, telling him to get up. Kiba wiped the blood from his mouth and stood up, looking at him.

"That was the familiar chakra signature I was feeling…" he said to Akamaru. "Let's go!"

"Bark!" Then they both ran after, beginning a high speed chase.


	4. Without a Trace

Sakura weaved around the civilians in the crowd, pushing off the ground, increasing her strength with every step to gain speed. She closed her eyes, sensing the chakra signature of her comrades; they were still in the apartment complex. Her body slammed into a man – almost falling to the ground by the force - immediately catching herself and continuing to run. The man who was now on the ground glared at her.

"Oi! Watch where you're going!" he yelled. She did not turn around, but merely gave her apologies.

"Gomen!" she yelled while continuing to run down the streets. She took a sharp left down an alleyway, jumping from one side of the wall to the other, and then placed her hand on the large gate in the middle before jumping over it successfully. She needed to use as little chakra as she could. As her feet came in contact with the concrete, she pushed off with as much force as she could, persisting towards her teammates.

_If I run towards the complex, we'll most likely be trapped, which would start a fight. I'll have to do this another way._

"Where did she go?!" Naruto yelled, looking in all directions.

"Byakugan!" he said, his Kekkei Genkai activating. He looked deeper within the crowd, seeing the figure in an alleyway. "Found her," he stated before squinting his eyes. "She's spiking her chakra."

"She's trying to get her teammates attention," Sasuke said. Shikamaru nodded. Neji looked at the rooftops above.

"Let's go!" he said, jumping first, followed by Sasuke, Shikamaru, Naruto, and Kiba and Akamaru, who had now caught up to the group.

* * *

Tsubasu immediately snapped his eyes open and sat up, grabbing Ryuu and Daichi's attention.

"Oi, what's wrong with you?" Daichi asked. Tsubasu stood up.

"Sakura's spiking her chakra," he said, grabbing his backpack. "She's in trouble; time to go." Ryuu nodded and stood up as quickly as he could while grabbing his own bag.

"Yosh!" Daichi exclaimed while grabbing his own bag. "Finally, a fight!"

* * *

"Huff, huff," Sakura breathed out. Detecting chakras behind her, she glanced back up ever so slightly at the rooftops above her. They had caught up, propelling towards her position.

_Damn it guys, where are you?!_

They jumped across the rooftop to another, she was close now.

"There!" Shikamaru exclaimed while pointing. They were almost exactly above her, and she seemed to be slowing down tremendously. Sasuke pulled out a kunai, flinging it at her back. Before she could turn around to block it, a figure appeared behind her and deflected it with his blade. Two other figures appeared at her sides, joining them.

"About time," she whispered.

"Well, there wasn't exactly a warning," Tsubasu replied. Ryuu stared back at the Konoha nin. More kunai were thrown at them. Daichi intervened, deflecting them. Chakra surged to their feet and they took off in a full sprint. Shikamaru jumped on the ground.

"Kuso," he said while making some hand signs. "Kagemane no Jutsu!" he shouted as his shadow quickly lengthened from underneath him and reached out to the four shinobi. Sakura's eyes widened, recalling the jutsu.

"Move!" she yelled just above a whisper to her comrades. They all looked back, seeing the shadow reaching out for them. It turned into a hand and grew from the ground, ready to grasp them. They jumped in different directions away from the shadow. Kiba smirked and made a hand sign, followed by a bark by Akamaru.

"Shikyaku no Jutsu!" he yelled as chakra engulfed both him and Akamaru. Akamaru transformed, his physical features resembling that of Kiba's. Their teeth and nails lengthened; sharpening more and more by the centimeter they grew. They began to spin, a fierce chakra surrounding their bodies as it sliced through the terrain beneath them. Waiting for the precise moment, they lurched towards one of the hooded figures with the dual blades while he was still in the air.

"Gatsuga!" Kiba shouted.

Tsubasu quickly unsheathed his two blades, landing on the ground in a strong, bent stance. He crossed his dual blades into the shape of an "x," preparing himself for the attack.

"Kamekaze!" he shouted, a strong force of wind surrounding his body and both of his blades.

Kiba and Akamaru smashed into the whirlwind of chakra; both of the attackers stuck in a deadlock. Tsubasu tightened his hold on his blades and pushed them outward, forcing more chakra into his attack. Kiba and Akamaru flinched, flying in opposite directions as Tsubasu glided backwards, flipping in the air and skidding across the top of the roof.

Kiba and Akamaru landed in the streets of the village, causing a large explosion to occur, followed by the screams of the civilians. Daichi immediately smirked.

"This is gonna be fun," he said before spotting his next victim. A man with long hair appeared in front of him, sitting back into a weird stance that he was unfamiliar with. Veins popped out of his face and around his eyes.

"Byakugan!" he said. Daichi smirked, unseen by the figure from the hood covering his face. He then made a hand sign.

"Byakurai!" the hooded figure shouted before holding his arms out forward, but his palms were covered by his overly-sized, long sleeves that hung loosely off his arms. Neji saw the chakra surrounding his hands inside of his sleeves. Immediately after, lightning shot out from his palms, straight out at Neji.

"Hakkeshō Kaiten!" he shouted, releasing a huge amount of chakra from all of his chakra points. He spun rapidly, parrying the attack and creating a rotating shield of chakra around himself. The lightning that it came in contact with was immediately obliterated into nothing.

Daichi glared, but then saw his defensive maneuver slowing down and his chakra starting to fade away. He took this advantage and immediately appeared in front of him. Two blades shot out from his sleeves, pointed straight at the male. Neji shot out his hand and pushed chakra out of his palm, which came in contact with one of his wrists. The maneuver caused Daichi to fly back into the closest building behind him, creating another huge explosion. Sakura's eyes widened.

"Daichi!" she yelled above a whisper. Ryuu's teeth gritted together.

_Kuso._

Tsubasu immediately caught on and appeared by the building that Daichi just flew into, finding his unconscious form and heaving his body over his shoulder like a sack of dirty laundry.

"Baka," he whispered, disappearing and appearing next to his other two comrades.

Sasuke, who had watched all of the fighting, decided to take this to his advantage, slipping into the shadows of the forest.

Naruto, who was checking up on Kiba and Akamaru, glared upon seeing the four figures retreating.

"We don't have time for this!" he yelled, forming a hand sign. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" he yelled while ten clones appeared in front of him. They all immediately ran as fast as they could after the four figures. The real Naruto looked down to the almost awakened Kiba and Akamaru.

"Hurry and catch up to us!" Naruto yelled before running after them.

Neji and Shikamaru appeared at his side. Once realizing someone's absence, his eyes widened and he frantically looked in all directions.

"Where's Sasuke-teme?!" he screamed. Shikamaru shook his head.

"We don't know. He disappeared," he replied. Naruto gasped.

"What?! We have to –"

"He's not our top priority right now, Naruto. We'll worry about him later," Neji stated, keeping his eyes forward.

"But the teme –"

"That's an order, Naruto," Neji said strictly. Naruto bit his lip, but then looked forward, continuing to run forward.

"Fine," he spat. An explosion was heard in front of them, and Naruto felt all of his clones disappear. "Damn it!" he yelled in response. Neji looked forward with Byakugan.

"They're beginning to slow down. Push forward, now. This is our chance."

* * *

The hooded figures were now outside of the village, running deeper and deeper into the forest. Daichi's eyes slowly flooded open when realizing the uncomfortable situation he was in, clearly over someone's shoulders.

"Nandeyo?!" he shouted, bouncing up and down on Tsubasu's shoulders painfully as they ran. Tsubasu glared at him.

"You got knocked out, baka," he said before throwing him off his shoulder, Daichi barely landing on his feet. He ran by his comrades' sides.

"Oi! Don't throw me around like a rag doll, you bastard!" he yelled towards him.

"Urusai!" Sakura yelled at them both, both hearing the venom she spat. They both immediately shut up.

Sensing a strong presence in front of her, her eyes widened. She skidded to a stop, followed by her teammates. Her eyes squinted, as if unable to see the figure in front of her, but then she flinched upon seeing Sasuke appear from the shadows in front of them.

"Tell me what your purpose is here," he began, unsheathing his blade as the sound of his blade against his tsuba was heard. "Or I'll kill you all, right now," he finished, flashing his Sharingan. Sakura bit her lip.

_Damn it._

"Sasuke-teme!" Sakura heard behind them. She looked back using her peripheral vision, seeing Naruto, Neji, and Shikamaru behind them.

The four hooded figures automatically stood in a stance, their backs facing one another.

"What do we do?" Ryuu whispered. Sakura kept quiet, causing her teammates to glance at her.

"Sa –"

"Urusai!" she spat, not wanting her name to be heard by the Konoha nin. "I'm thinking."

Shikamaru took in the appearances of the four figures in front of him. They were all covered in black pants and black hoodies, covering their faces. The three men wore regular, black shinobi shoes while the female of the group wore a pair of long boots over her pants that ended just below the knee. Also unlike her teammates, she had gauze around her forearms that ended at her elbows and her hoodie was sleeveless. One of the other shinobi, however, had longer, wider sleeves than the rest of his teammates. From what he saw before, he was hiding a set of wrist blades on each arm.

After a few seconds of examining, Kiba and Akamaru appeared beside Naruto. His blue eyes looked over at them.

"Ne, finally decided to show up?" he remarked. Kiba closed his eyes as Akamaru strangely sniffed the ground, which was unnoticed by them.

"Pfft. Whatever. You're just lucky that –"

He immediately stopped when he saw Akamaru's tail wagging and his tongue happily hanging out of his mouth. Kiba blinked a few times, which caused Naruto, Neji, and Shikamaru to look down at him too.

"Akamaru?" Kiba asked. Akamaru ignored him and ran up to the group in front of him. Kiba's eyes widened and he reached out to him, but he was too quick.

"Akamaru!" Sakura heard Kiba yell. Akamaru quickly out-swerved the first three hooded figures. Once Sakura halfway turned her body to look in that direction, Akamaru jumped on her, causing her to fall to the ground. Everyone's eyes around them immediately widened. Daichi and Tsubasu swiftly pulled out their weapons and were ready to attack when they noticed that the dog was not attacking her, but licking her face. Her hood had fallen off.

"A-Akamaru!" Sakura said, flinching at the cold spit that now covered her entire face. All of the Konoha shinobi instantly froze on the spot, staring at the scene in front of them.

Akamaru was sitting on top of Haruno Sakura…licking her face.

"Akamaru!" Sakura spat venomously. The dog flinched and lowered his ears and tail, getting off of her and backing away. She wiped the spit off of her face, slowly standing to her feet.

"S-Sakura-chan…?" Naruto stuttered out. Sakura looked into his eyes, immediately regretting the action once seeing the fear, confusion, and almost set of tears form in his eyes. She quickly bit her lip, looking the other way.

_Shimatta._

Sasuke stared at the side of her face emotionlessly, many thoughts going through his mind.

_Sakura._

"Sakura…You know them? Who are they?" Ryuu immediately questioned her. Sakura continued staring at the ground. Kiba looked down at Akamaru as he sadly walked back to his side, petting his head softly.

_That's why her smell was so familiar._

"Sakura-chan! I-I can't believe it's you!" Naruto started off happily, trying to hide the tears in his eyes. Sakura refused to look up at him again. He took a step forward, making Shikamaru, Neji, and Kiba look at him. "You can come back to the village with us! Look! Sasuke-teme – he returned to the village!" he said, pointing at him. However, she refused to look back at him. Her fists merely tightened and she continued to glare at the ground. "We can be Team 7 again! Just like old times; like I promised! Remember…?" he continued with a shaky voice. An uncomfortable silence filled the area. Everyone, including her teammates, was staring at her questionably. "Sakura-chan…why won't you talk to me?"

"These are your old comrades?" Tsubasu asked her. Sakura also refused to answer him.

"So, this was before Or –"

"Urusai!" Sakura spat angrily, looking up from the ground at Daichi. He flinched, never seeing her so angry.

Naruto, Kiba, and Shikamaru also flinched from her violent tone. There was a quiet, awkward silence before Sakura turned to all of her teammates with a bit of sadness and determination in her voice. "Tsubasu, Daichi, Ryuu," she said while pulling out a set of spiked, fingerless gloves from her pouch that was located on her hip. "Alpha 2."

"But Sakura –" Ryuu interjected.

"Do what I say, Ryuu," she said, glaring at him intensely while adjusting the gloves on her hands.

Everyone except Naruto and Sasuke sat into a stance. Naruto merely stood there in confusion, staring at his ex-teammate.

Sakura sank low, looking back and forth at the shinobi. "Go!" she shouted as her teammates jumped in the air, disappearing in thin air as she brought down her spiked fist into the ground, creating a huge explosion around her and the entire area. The ground shook and turned into pieces as the dust covered the area.

Everyone immediately covered their eyes and jumped back to a safer place. Sasuke covered his eyes his hand, looking all around the area with Sharingan. He glanced over to where she was once standing, but she was now nowhere to be found.

_Kuso…where did she go?!_

Everything beyond that became blurry for the Konoha nin. All of a sudden, a large fire consumed the area, separating everyone from one another. They landed on the ground, looking around for their comrades and the enemy. Neji frantically searched around with his Byakugan, seeing his teammates surrounded by the fire, but Sakura and the other three were already gone.

_Shit!_

Sakura, Daichi, Ryuu, and Tsubasu ran as fast as they could in the other direction, away from the fire and away from the Konoha ninja.

"Do you think we lost them?" Ryuu asked. Sakura looked back, and was about to nod when she automatically flinched and fell to the ground in pain. She quickly grasped her neck in pain as her whole body tensed.

"Shit…N-Not now," she whispered to herself. Her teammates turned around and surrounded her as she screamed in pain. Tsubasu glared.

"Kuso," he said, grabbing her and carrying her bridle-style, catching an unneeded glance from Ryuu. "Let's go," he said, and all three of them automatically ran off.

Sasuke landed by Neji's side.

"I'm going after her," he said. Neji looked at him strictly and demandingly.

"No, we need to head back to Konoha and report this to the Hokage," he responded.

"If someone doesn't follow her, we might not ever find her again," he replied strictly, his Sharingan still blazing impatiently, knowing that they were quickly getting away.

"How will we find you?" Neji asked. Sasuke simply stared at him.

"I'll figure something out," he replied. Neji closed his eyes thinking to himself for a few seconds.

"Uchiha, this going to be on myhead, you know that, right?" he responded. Sasuke nodded.

"Aa. I know," he replied. "Trust me; I won't let you down." Neji saw the determination in his eyes once reopening his own before he sighed.

"Then go. We'll take care of the damage here and report back to Konoha. Don't make me regret this." Sasuke merely nodded in response before he disappeared in a flash.

* * *

The fire had finally dissipated. Most of the trees, the ground, and everything around them were completely destroyed from Sakura's fierce attack and the great rage of the flames. It had taken them hours to purge the fire, but they had finally accomplished their task.

Shikamaru walked up to Neji with a sigh while rubbing the back of his head.

"Troublesome. I need a cigarette," he said. Kiba and Akamaru then walked up to them.

"The village is safe; the fire didn't reach out that far," Kiba exclaimed, followed by a sad bark from Akamaru. Everyone then looked around for Naruto, who was sitting on a log with his head hung in his hands. Shikamaru's eyes saddened before walking up behind him and laying a hand on his shoulder.

"We'll find her, Naruto."

"She's alive. I-I can't believe she's alive. But, why-why would she…" he was clearly a loss for words. Shikamaru didn't know how to answer his questions, but continued to stare at him in sadness.

Kiba looked around, noticing they were again missing one more person.

"Where did Sasuke go?" he asked, catching Naruto's attention and his gaze. He quickly looked around the area.

"Sasuke-teme?" he asked himself. He then quickly stood up, looking around the area. "Where did he go?!" he asked frantically.

"He went after Sakura," Neji said, causing everyone to look at him. Naruto's eyes widened.

"What?!" he said, running up to Neji and grabbing him by the collar. "Why would you send him after her and not me?!" he yelled. Neji just stared at him emotionlessly.

"Sasuke knew where she went and he asked my permission. If anyone would be good enough to keep track of her without getting noticed, it's him," he demanded. This did not calm him down.

"I still don't understand, why –"

"I am the leader, Uzumaki_,"_ he spat demandingly. Naruto flinched for a second before letting him go and turning in the opposite direction.

"…I'm going after them."

"No, you're not," Shikamaru exclaimed. "The rest of us are going back to Konoha to report this to the Hokage, and then we will think of a strategic plan from there," he finished. Naruto tightened his fists until they turned white, and his face was red with fury.

"I'm not listening to you! I'm not going to lose my teammates; not again!" he shouted, not turning around to look at them. Shikamaru walked over to him and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, trying to help him relax.

"Naruto, you aren't going to lose them. Sasuke is going to find Sakura and keep an eye on her. Nothing's going to happen to them," Shikamaru exclaimed. After a few seconds, Naruto slumped his shoulders in sadness.

"How do you know for sure?" he asked. Shikamaru just stared at the back of his head.

"I trust him," he replied. Naruto then turned around to face them while looking at the ground to the right of him.

"I don't like it, but, fine," he exclaimed. Shikamaru and Kiba then looked at Neji, who nodded.

"Alright, we're leaving now. Let's head back to Konoha so we can retrieve Sasuke and Sakura as soon as possible," he said while facing the other direction that they went. "Let's head out," he said.

"Hai," Kiba and Shikamaru said. In a flash, Neji, Shikamaru, Kiba, and Akamaru disappeared.

Naruto simply stood there quietly, staring at the same place on the ground he had been staring at for the last few minutes. He then slowly turned around, imagining Sasuke and Sakura's retreating backs, walking away slowly into the darkness. Naruto felt tears prick his eyes, immediately wiping them away.

_Take care of her, Teme. I'll be back; for the both of you. I promise._

With that, he disappeared into the shadows of the night, running after his fellow comrades back to Konoha.


	5. Fans Only Intensify the Flame

"What?!" Tsunade shrieked as she stood to her feet—the rage pumping through her, slamming her fists down on the unstable desk.

Kakashi and Shizune, their surprise engulfing the rest of their emotions, stared like statues, quiet and immobile.

Neji, Shikamaru, Naruto, Kiba, and Akamaru stood in front of the outraged Hokage, their heads slightly lowered caused by her demeaning mannerism. A whimper had escaped Akamaru's throat as his nose nudged further into Kiba's torn, dirtied pants. The owner's hand, out of concern and habit, scratched the top of his head, though it helped soothe himself as his white fur entangled around his fingers.

Attempting to control the unneeded anger, Tsunade sat back down with a slight creak of the chair. Her fists, whitening from the loss of blood circulation, relaxed, her immediate action to stretch to that overused alcohol bottle. However, she restrained herself, and instead, tampered with the edges of her paperwork, folding back the edges as the seemingly smooth surface rubbed against her calloused fingers. There was a time and place for everything, she repeated, her newly proclaimed mantra repeating in her mind like a spinning, ceiling fan.

_Fan, _she thought, picturing the Uchiha emblem being torn by Death's clinging grip, and Sasuke's body engulfed by flames before he even had the chance to struggle back.

She glanced upward, her brown eyes coming in contact with pupiless ones.

"Why would you send the Uchiha to look after her out of everyone else?" she demanded, her fingers curling once again and her nails scratching the creases of her skin.

"He knew which way Sakura and her team ran off to. He's quick, light on his feet, and perfectly capable of watching over Sakura, Hokage-sama," he began. "Besides, I have a feeling he would have done it anyway," Neji stated sternly, not backing away from the Hokage's overbearing tone.

Tsunade stared into his eyes, noticing the confidence that resided within them. Though not comfortable with the decision made, she back in her chair, slumping her shoulders ever so slightly, resembling that of weakened warrior.

"Very well," she started off, raising her fingertips to circulate around her temples. "With this, I am going to send some ANBU to find and bring them both back."

Naruto, whose head had been hung low for a great majority of the conversation, immediately raised it.

"But Tsunade-baa-chan, send us back after them! We know exactly where the fight was held and we can find out details—"

"Naruto—"

"–and Kiba and Akamaru can track their scent and find which direction they went in –"

"Naruto –"

"–and I'll bring Sakura-chan and Sasuke-teme back safely! I promise I won't –"

"Naruto!" Tsunade shouted, causing Naruto's constant blabbering to come to an end. His eyes, filled with hope and desperation, widened. She took a deep breath, her eyes closing, trying to recollect her thoughts.

"I know you want to go after your teammates, Naruto, but there's something you need to understand," she began, gazing into his deep, cerulean eyes. Desperation, confusion, and sadness resided in them; however, she would not let it alter her decision. "From your story, it seems that Sakura has her own reasons for not coming back to Konoha," she started off again. "She's either being threatened or she's chosen not to return."

Naruto cast his eyes downward upon feeling a striking pain in his chest. Tsunade continued, enduring pain in her own heart.

"I want her back as much as you do and would love nothing more than for even myself to go after her, but remember that we all have our own duties to fulfill. Your mission is over, and we are both needed here in the village. And, on top of it all, Uchiha Sasuke, a former S-Criminal, is on the loose, doing who knows what," she continued. Naruto, controlled by anger, cut her off again.

"Sasuke is doing his job! He's probably protecting Sakura with his life right now! He would never let her get hurt! He didn't just run away!" Naruto argued back, knowing exactly what Tsunade was thinking by the choice of words she used. Tsunade closed her eyes upon an aching feeling rising to her head.

"We don't know that for sure, Naruto. He ran off once, he could easily do it again," Tsunade responded. Naruto was about to reply back, but she cut him off. "Now, my decision is final. I'm sending ANBU to track them both down and bring them back to Konoha safely."

"But Baa-chan –"

"And that's final,"Tsunade finished.

Naruto opened his mouth, but with nothing to say, decided to remain quiet. After silence filled the room, Tsunade observed the shinobi in front of her, shooing them away with a flick of her wrist.

"I will let you all know when I have some news. You're dismissed." Everyone except Naruto bowed respectively, walking out of the room without an objection. Naruto, as if something was on his mind, remained in front of her for a few seconds before he followed the others out the door. Tsunade immediately turned to Shizune, who became instantly alarmed by her heightened declaration.

"Get me my best ANBU tracking team, now!" she yelled. Shizune straightened up her composure with Ton Ton in her hands.

"Hai!" she replied while scurrying out of the room. She glanced over to Kakashi, who hadn't said a single word as the shinobi team returned.

"We need to find out who she was with and their records. Maybe that will help us locate her."

* * *

"_Ne! Another bowl, old man!" Naruto exclaimed, holding up his empty bowl of ramen proudly. The old man scowled._

"_I'm making the next bowl as fast as I can!" he grimaced. Sakura rolled her eyes, slowly eating her own meal._

"_Oi, Naruto-baka, slow down. You're going to get a stomachache from eating so fast," she replied slowly before politely slurping on her noodles. This made Naruto frown in response. _

"_But Sakura-chaaaaaaan! It's just soooooo good!" _

"Sakura?" Ryuu asked. Sakura looked up from the branch she was jumping across to see Ryuu's concerned face staring at her. Sakura and the rest of her team were traveling swiftly through the trees when her mind began to wander. Shaking her old memories clear from her mind, she responded to him.

"Yeah?" she asked, trying to play off the sudden loss in her concentration.

"Are you all right?" he asked. She nodded in response, faking a smile.

"Of course; why wouldn't I be?" He frowned, not fully believing her response.

"Okay," he said sadly before continuing to leap from tree to tree. Her mind, as if pulled by some unknown force, wandered again. Ever since the sudden appearance of her ex-teammates, her mind had been stolen by past memories, and she constantly felt a presence behind her.

She pushed away the thought, attempting to get rid of the paranoia that she seemed to heavily cling on to. A voice continued to linger in her head, proclaiming the presence of a being in the shadows that concealed its existence like prey, whose life hung in the balance of its own ability and its predator's hunger.

However, upon feeling no chakra signature behind them, she forced herself to think of something else – something that would push the voice away to the back of her head where things were merely unattainable. Immediately, she pictured her old friends and teammates, causing her heart to lurch in her throat in a remorseful way.

What would they think of her now? They probably thought she abandoned her village – killing off the only blood relations she had left to severe the bonds holding her there. However, those she was close to would know better; they would know that she deeply loved her parents with all her heart and would never do something so vile and malicious.

But they would still need to take precautions and send an ANBU team to track her down like an S-ranked criminal, to search every part of the Ninja Nations until she was retrieved, to beat her down and drag her back if necessary. And, when the time came, she will be forced to fight them, and that will look even worse on her newly formed transcript.

Her heart leaped once more when picturing the saddened expression covering Naruto's face; the slender gap of his lips, the widened, cerulean eyes filled with surprise and grief, the slight twitching in his fingers that signified the need to grasp something too far out of his reach. It clung to Sakura's thoughts heavily, the burden quite too strong for her to handle. Naruto did not deserve the sadness that he always seemed to be receiving; he was much too kindhearted and benevolent.

His physical features retaliated into her mind. He's even taller now – a lot taller than her; he bared over her dominantly almost a full head and a half taller than herself. His face and body, which had completely lost the baby fat it once held, became more masculine over a time period of a couple of years. His clothing style had not changed much – his bright, orange pants standing out greatly against the forest green leaves. However, his old jacket was replaced with a netting shirt and a Jounin vest engraved with an Uzumaki symbol on the back. The last time she was in Konoha, he was still technically ranked as a genin. Now, he had grown up to become a strong Jounin. A sense of pride tingled in her chest.

"Sakura," Tsubasu said, grabbing her attention. She looked up and noticed that they were all standing motionless on top of a branch. She was so consumed by her thoughts that she did not even notice when they halted.

"We're close to the next village." She nodded, subconsciously pulling her hood securely over her face. They began sprinting again, heading towards their destination.

* * *

The village they entered resembled the last one; it didn't have shinobi or a military in the village to keep the citizens safe. However, unlike the other village, this one had a lot less people, suddenly becoming a lot easier to walk through the streets without being run over. It wasn't much of a surprise, considering the Country of Earth had been a battle field for most of the Third Great Ninja War and most of the great villages had been destroyed, leaving these small villages to fend for themselves. These people had no shields or walls to protect them from enemies – only the hope that they would see nothing of interest and leave them be.

"Since there aren't a lot of people around here, we should be able to interrogate some of them about any information about Orochimaru," Tsubasu exclaimed. They all nodded in response, agreeing with his plan.

"We also need some more food," Sakura added in, remembering that last night's dinner was all they had left.

Tsubasu nodded in response, splitting them up into two groups. Sakura went with Ryuu to retrieve some food while Tsubasu and Daichi went around to any bars to see if any Sound ninja had been spotted. She walked alongside Ryuu, who had been surprisingly quiet, glancing around at the stands as her thoughts were once again consumed in the depths of her mind.

There was something that constantly clawed at her concentration like an irritable rash that never seemed to go away. Uchiha Sasuke, the bloodthirsty avenger who severed all bonds with Konoha, was with them. It seemed as though he had returned willingly, which means that his brother, Uchiha Itachi, had already been slayed. What was even more of a surprise was that he was healthy and alive, unaffected by the effects of revenge, it seemed. Maybe those were his true plans after all – to kill his brother and return to his village. She remembered looking up towards the sky, the sun radiating in her eyes, staring at his stoic face after so many years.

"_Sakura, huh…"_ _Sakura suddenly froze as her anger for Sai had disappeared. That voice that spoke her name; it was so familiar. Her head automatically began to turn in the direction of the voice. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion as her forgotten hand, which had a tight grip on Sai's collar, loosened and slowly fell to her side. She gazed up to face him: the one she had been searching for, for so long._

"_S-Sas…uke…kun…" _

"Sakura-chan!" Ryuu yelled beside her. She flinched in surprise as the apple that was in her hand slipped from her grasp and onto the ground. Once her head jerked upward involuntarily from her name being called, staring into his silver eyes, which were full of concern. She was about to respond to him, but she then remembered the apple that she had dropped, causing her to frown.

_Damn._

She picked it up and looked at the scowling cashier whose arms were folded over his chest. Her frowned deepened as she pulled out some change and gave it to him. His frown, however, was replaced with a smile.

"Have a good day!" he responded, shoving away the cash away greedily into his own pocket. She scowled, turning away and attempting to rub the soiled dirt off of the apple. She continued to ignore him as if she had been oblivious to his gaze.

"Sakura-chan, you've been acting strange ever since our encounter with those Konoha ninja," Ryuu said. Her stoic face turned into another frown as she threw away the dirty apple. She knew he cared a lot about her, but there was nothing she wanted to say to him right now. With that, she turned to him with another fake smile.

"Oh, I know. I'm sorry. It was just weird seeing my old teammates and friends; I'm okay," she said before securing the strap of her backpack on her shoulder and pulling down her hood to cover her face. Even under Ryuu's hood, she could see a scowl forming.

"Okay, if you say so," he replied. With that, they made their way to a local bar.

* * *

Will no luck of finding any information on Orochimaru or his henchmen, they quietly made their way back into the woods to set camp. In the morning, they would head to their next destination. For days, they would go from town to town constantly looking for any traces or signs of where Orochimaru could be, they go rest and get some food and items they might need, and when they find a good spot, they train to grow stronger. At their current level, they could probably beat Orochimaru in his weakened state with no problem. They knew they were strong enough, especially together, but they couldn't help but be too careful.

As they were walking into the darkness of the night, Sakura could not help but keep her eyes peeled for anyone around them. She gazed through the bushes to see a glimmer in the night – it was the gleam of the moon reflecting into the eyes of a small animal. Her body tensed, stopping to gaze back into the glistening orbs of the creature. The gleaming of the moon's rays reminded her of a pair of similar eyes that seemed to stare straight through her soul, pushing her farther and farther towards the edge until she felt the pressure of gravity disintegrate her bones.

"Sakura!" she heard someone shout. She looked ahead, seeing her teammates staring at her from underneath their hoods. Tsubasu, who was intently gazing into her eyes, spoke again. "You're going to fall behind."

She looked at them and then back to where the animal was standing. However, the creature had already disappeared, not even leaving a single trace to its existence. Without another moment, she looked back up at her teammates.

"Gomen," she apologized before catching up to them. They all stood and stared at her, but she ignored them. Again she fixed the strap of her backpack securely on her shoulder before walking past her teammates. After a few seconds, she could hear their footsteps, and a small amount of mutters from Daichi that she didn't quite catch. However, she wasn't so concerned about them. She still couldn't remove the piercing look of Orochimaru's eyes out of her head.

* * *

They all sat around the campfire eating their fish, a strange silence consuming the group. Daichi, who was usually talking up a storm, was surprisingly hushed, only to be left chomping down on his food. The one noise that could be heard was the crackling of twigs caused by the flames of the campfire. Its heat radiated around the surrounding area, soothing the muscles in Sakura's face. With her eyes half-lidded from the relaxation and the exhaustion, she looked up from the fish in her hands and gazed into the fire, not paying much heed to anyone around her.

"Oi! Sakura!" Daichi screamed in her ear, who had been attempting to get her attention for a solid minute.

"What?!" she screamed in response, rubbing her sore ear. He looked at her stoically and then pointed down to her food.

"Are you gonna finish that?" he asked her. She rolled her eyes and handed the last half of her fish to him.

"Take it," she replied. A bright smile covered his face as he took it enthusiastically, almost eating it whole. She stood up and headed over to her sleeping bag.

"You're going to bed so soon?" Ryuu asked. She didn't turn around to the eyes peering at her from behind.

"Yeah, I'm tired. It's been a long day," she said before she took off her jacket and her boots and laid down into the sleeping bag, facing away from the campfire. After a few minutes of lying there, sleep finally consumed her, and she drifted off into a deep sleep.


	6. Butting Heads

Sakura sat up with a jolt, her eyes widening as a gasp simultaneously escaped her throat. Her immediate, redundant action was to grasp the tattoo embedded on her shoulder. Her body was shaking uncontrollably and her lip quivered as she stared at the ground in front of her. Sweat trickled down her temple, cascading down her cheek and onto her lap. She sat there for what seemed like hours, reiterating the nightmare in her memory.

_The curse mark slowly and painfully spread fully across her body. Quickly after, the mark advanced to the second stage. Her physical features quickly changed, resembling that of a demonic animal that did nothing but conquer and destroy. The purple chakra continued to swirl around her body like a whirlwind, destroying everything in its grasp. _

_She grabbed her head in agony, a loud, bloodcurdling scream emitting from her throat. Her golden eyes scanned the area around her frantically, glimpsing at darkened shadows. Out of fear, her arms swung, the chakra following her motions as the shadows were instantly obliterated into nothing. Her eyes widened upon realizing those silhouettes were her friends and comrades, Death consuming their souls with no means of escape. Tears streamed down her face, rivers being created, her power continued to grow throughout the area, terminating everything in its path. _

She sat there in fright, replaying her nightmare like a record. Upon realizing she was grasping her shoulder tightly, she released her grip, wiping the sweat off of her forehead. She looked over to her side; the fire was put out and her teammates were quietly sleeping in their sleeping bags. She stood up, put on her shoes and her jacket, and quietly walked away from the campsite. She needed space and time to think.

Once far enough away from the campsite, she sat against a rock and slid down it until she was sitting down, her clothes and the bottom of her boots scraping against the soil. She rested her feet on the ground, close to her body and rested her elbows atop of her knees, holding her head. Her fingertips rotated in a circular motion around her temples, a subconscious action she had adopted from her old mentor. Why did this have to happen to her? Images of seeing her old comrades flooded into her mind, like a tidal wave crashing against a pillar.

"_Sakura-chan! I-I can't believe it's you!" Naruto started off happily, trying to hide the tears in his eyes. Sakura refused to look up at him again. He took a step forward, making Shikamaru, Neji, and Kiba look at him. "You can come back to the village with us! Look! Sasuke-teme – he returned to the village!" he said, pointing at him. However, she refused to look back at him. Her fists merely tightened and she continued to glare at the ground. "We can be Team 7 again! Just like old times; like I promised! Remember…?" he continued with a shaky voice. An uncomfortable silence filled the area. Everyone, including her teammates, was staring at her questionably. "Sakura-chan…why won't you talk to me?"_

Her teeth sank down into her lip, the memory clouding her mind. It had been years since she stared into those cerulean eyes, along with that sheepish grin that had spread joy wherever it went. That feeling of delight was contagious, causing others to be impacted by his cheerful demeanor. No matter how far you traveled, it was not something that could be forgotten, like a trivial or insignificant fact. It remained plastered in your mind, haunting your dreams with a sense of remorse, a hint of sorrow that triggered more memories. It was a chain of events upon which there was no weak link.

The plea of sadness in his voice made her lurch, staggering in her priorities. She was surprised that she repelled the impulse envelop him in her arms. Tears were never something she handled too well, especially when it came from him. He was like a brother to her, and she felt as though she needed to protect him when he wept. Resisting the urge to forget about her mission was unbearable. She desperately needed to defy the advocating voice that shrieked in the back of her mind to return to her old allies.

_Old allies, _she almost stated out loud, the memory of the Sharingan glowering at her as his sword unsheathed from his tsuba, a crackling noise being heard from the electricity dancing about the blade. Sasuke, the former antagonist of Konoha, returned willingly, it seemed. She was unaware of the occurrences beforehand, or what his theories were, but, deep down inside, a sense of warmth filled her heart.

"_Shut up, Sasuke-teme!"_

"_Tch. Dobe."_

She slightly chuckled at the memory. Even though they always fought, she knew they were happy, though the lone Uchiha would never dare to admit it. She knew him well enough.

What if she gave up this mission? What if she went home to her fellow Leaf nin, and gave up on this path for peace? She imagined the old, fellow teammates awaiting her at the gates of Konohagakure. Ino, Lee, Shikamaru, Sai, Kakashi-sensei, Naruto, Sasuke…

She immediately shut her eyes once again. She would not think about him anymore; she would not show weakness. No, she was a stronger kunoichi now. She would not let someone like him cloud her mind of judgment. No matter how much she wanted to run into his arms and tell her how much she thought about him. She instantly growled lowly to herself. There she goes again.

Her eyes instantly shot open upon hearing a crack of a twig behind her. She pulled out a kunai, rose to her feet, and held the weapon sturdily in front of her. She looked around, seeing no one out in the open, and pierced her eyes through the darkness of the trees.

"Who's there?" she demanded, feeling a presence directly in front of her. She raised the blade even more as it glistened against the rays of the sharp moon above them. "Come out." After a few seconds of what seemed like a battle within his own mind, he stepped out into the open light, revealing a stoic looking Uchiha. Sakura's eyes widened in alarm, her mouth parted in shock. Instantaneously, words that she thought to herself replayed in her mind like a record.

_I am a stronger kunoichi now; I will not let him intimidate me._

Her grip on the kunai tightened, her eyes heavily glaring into his own.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, but he simply remained calm as his hands rested lazily in his pockets, reminding her of Shikamaru, yet with an intimidating aura that he always seemed to feed off of him.

"I'm here to take you back to Konoha." She stood there stoically, badly wanting to laugh at the irony that was just displayed before them.

Oh, how the tables have turned.

"Yeah, I don't think so," she spat as a sudden wave of anger washed over her. So he thinks that he can leave Konoha and not return when they demand it, but when the Uchiha declares for her to come home, she's just going to do whatever he says? Hell no, that's definitely not the way it works.

"You don't have a choice." He definitely just chose the wrong words.

"Excuse me?" she spat harshly, slightly dropping her kunai. "You can't tell me what to do, Uchiha!" she yelled, throwing her arm to the side angrily. "Just because you rejoined Konoha, doesn't mean you can tell me what to do! You have no right to come after me and think that everything's all right!" she yelled at the top of her voice as her eyes bore heavily in Sasuke's.

He did not step down to her tone. Instead, he took a step forward.

She took a step back, raising her kunai once again.

"Don't you dare touch me!" she argued.

"Hmph," Sasuke muttered as he started walking towards her. Sakura pumped some chakra into her kunai and threw it towards him while doing some hands signs.

"Kunai Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Sakura whispered to herself as many kunai clones appeared in the air, flying straight towards Sasuke. In a blink of an eye, he unsheathed his chokuto, deflecting most of the kunai and dodging the rest at a great speed. At a blink of an eye, he appeared behind Sakura as the wind blew through their hair. Sakura's eyes widened as memories suddenly flooded back in her mind.

"Sakura."

"…" she remained quiet.

"I'm bringing you back home," he said as he brought his hand down towards her neck. He was instantly stopped when Sakura's hand shot up, grabbing his wrist and squeezing it tightly without a moment's hesitation. Sasuke stared at her stoically while hiding the hint of surprise that hit him as she squeezed his wrist tighter. She looked back at him and her glare intensified.

"Not again." She turned around and twisted his arm outward, breaking it. However, he disappeared in a poof.

"I assumed you've gotten stronger," Sasuke said from behind her. She turned around and faced him, looking at him just as unemotionally as he was. He looked her up and down before smirking. "How about we do a little spar, just to see how much you've improved?" he recommended. After a few seconds of thinking to herself, to Sasuke's disclosure, she smirked.

"You're on," she said. Sasuke unsheathed his chokuto and stuck in the ground next to him. They both stood there for a few seconds, staring into each other's eyes with determination before they both pushed off the ground, running full speed at each other. Sakura pushed off the ground, performing a wheel kick to Sasuke's head. He immediately ducked, rolling out of the way and ending up behind her, performing his own wheel kick.

She ducked, quickly stood back up, and grabbed his leg, pulling it downward and holding it at her side tightly so he could not move. She twisted her body slightly to the left, using her right foot to kick him in the side. He grabbed her leg, and they both stood there in a dead lock, holding each other's leg. She growled before bending down and pushing her left foot off the ground, twisting her whole body and swinging it around in the air, aiming it at Sasuke's face. He ducked his head out of the way and pushed her body the same way her foot was going, separating them. Sakura landed safely on the ground, skidding to a stop from the powerful kick she just executed.

Sakura ran at him, executing a scissor kick to his jaw, but Sasuke raised his hands, defending himself as her feet kicked the palms of his hands. She then quickly performed a spin wheel kick, followed by a front kick to his face, which Sasuke dodged. Another kick was executed with her right foot, which Sasuke avoided and then caught the back of her ankle. Sakura twisted her body to the right while planting her right hand on the ground to properly adjust her body, and then swung her left foot.

Sasuke raised his other arm vertically, blocking the attack, and then grabbed her other ankle before twisting his body, causing Sakura to go off balance and then throwing her. She hit the ground on her back and then flipped over, skidding back on her feet in a bent position. She looked at him and glared as a small growl escaped her throat.

"You've gotten faster," he proclaimed stoically.

"Tch," she mumbled before running at him, pushing off the ground and changing her direction, jumping against the nearest tree with one foot and aiming her fist at his face, which he dodged. She steadied her composure, spinning around and kicking at his head. He ducked and spun around before kicking at her back. She spun back towards him, raised her calf, and blocked it before performing two jabs at his face.

He blocked with the back of his hands. Performing a strong swing, she watched as he bent his knees and lowered his body. He watched her arm soar right over his head before throwing a jab at her stomach. She raised knee in defense, which came in contact with his knuckle. They both backed up slightly, and Sakura ran at him again.

Sasuke's moves became faster, and he threw countless punches and jabs at Sakura's face, which she quickly dodged and blocked. He bent down and swung his leg across the dirt, attempting to trip her, but she merely performed an aerial flip in the air and landed at his side.

He stood up, spun until his back was towards her and aimed his right elbow at her chest. She brought up her palms in defense and shielded herself before he swung his left fist at her while simultaneously turning his body. She ducked, and he took this advantage and kicked her in the stomach, and she slammed into the tree behind her.

"Ngh," she muttered as her back hit the tree. Sasuke aimed a punch at her face, and she quickly spun against the tree and his fist came in contact with the hard bark. She spun around the entire tree, and aimed a kick to his side. Sasuke suddenly grabbed a branch from the tree, pulled himself up, implanted his feet against the bark, and pushed off of it, dodging her attack and flipping backwards a couple times to separate himself from her. The tree then broke in half before crumbling to pieces from Sakura's fierce, chakra-filled kick. Sasuke immediately examined her.

_Brute strength._

Sakura ran forward, pumping chakra into her fists and into her feet as she sprinted ahead with continuously increasing speed. Sasuke instantly activated his Sharingan, with made Sakura inwardly smirk, as if she had gained an achievement. She was then in front of him, constantly throwing quick jabs, punches, and kicks at an abnormal speed. His eyes quickly speculated each jab, each punch, each kick, identifying her every movement, and dodged every single last one of them.

She performed another aerial flip, landing at his side and executing a strong, chakra-filled, spin wheel kick. He dodged, and he could even feel the chakra radiating off of her foot, which caused him to stagger. As her foot was still in the air from her last kick, she pushed off the ground with her other foot, aiming it at the side of Sasuke's head. His eyes widened, and he held up his arms in defense.

_Kuso!_

He flew back into a tree, breaking it, and harshly landed on the ground, rolling a few times before completely stopping. He sat up painfully while shaking his head, looking through the smoke, trying to find where she went. She came running straight at him through the smoke and jumped in the air, spinning in a circular motion and jutting her leg forward, coming straight down towards Sasuke. He rolled backwards, bent down on his feet, and flipped back out of the way as Sakura's heel came down on the ground, creating a small crater where he just was.

Sakura ran at him again, executing more jabs, punches, and kicks, which again, Sasuke all dodged. She then kicked at his head, and he moved backwards out of the way. Her back was facing towards him and she brought her elbow back towards his jaw. He stooped low as her elbow went over his head, coming contact into the tree, and it split in half. He jumped off of the ground and spun a few times diagonally into the air, landed on the ground, and performed a back flip.

Simultaneously, they reached into their pouches and grabbed three shuriken and threw them at each other. All three weapons collided with each other, flying in different directions before sticking themselves into a few trees and into the ground. Sasuke ran at her at full speed, suddenly appearing behind her in the air and swung his right leg.

She ducked and rolled out of the way as he landed, and she pushed off the ground, kicking at his head, which he side stepped easily. Sasuke executed a side kick, kicking her in the stomach; she blocked with her forearm, but still staggered backwards. He jumped high in the air above her, bringing his foot down on her head. She rolled out of the way, and turned around, flipping forward and thrusting her foot down. He caught her foot, and she put all her weight forward, pushing off of him and landing on the ground before pumping chakra into her feet and jumping several meters back.

"Huff, huff," she breathed heavily, trying to catch her breath. She scanned Sasuke up and down, noticing that he was also slightly out of breath. He began stepping back a few steps before grabbing the hilt of his blade and pulling it out of the ground, holding it in front of him.

"I know you can do better than that, Sakura," he said with a smirk, as if mocking her. She instantly glared, pulling out three kunai, putting one in her mouth and the other two in her hands, holding them up in front of her in a defensive position. They both ran at each other at full speed. Sasuke slid against the dirt and brought his blade down upon her shoulder. She raised her right kunai quickly and deflected it, pushing his blade the other way, attempting to throw him off balance and stab him in the back, but he merely spun his whole body around and blocked her attack.

Metal clashed against metal with a spark, and they both retracted their arms. Sakura pushed off the ground and spun horizontally, flexing her foot and trying to kick the top of his head with her heel, but he spun out of the way and swiped his blade horizontally at her. As she spun in the air, she blocked his attack, pushed his blade downward, spun over his blade, and kicked his wrist in attempts of detaching him from his blade; which failed, as he managed to keep his hold strong. He backed up and immediately regained his composure while rushing forward for another attack.

Sasuke yet again increased his speed and appeared directly in front of Sakura, accurately swiping his blade at her in attempts of scratching her, but she merely deflected and blocked with her kunai. His swings were accurate and precise, but she kept up with his rapid movements. They both jutted their weapons forward, causing another clash to take place between them, and Sakura took this chance to pump chakra into her feet and she pushed forward, causing Sasuke to stumble back. She flipped the kunai in her hand and threw it at him in close range, and he barely dodge it as it flew through his hair and hit a tree a couple meters from them.

Sakura jumped back, but Sasuke ran forward. Be brought his blade down on her and she held her kunai above her head, blocking it. He swerved his blade clockwise, causing Sakura's hand to loosen her grip, and using his chokuto to throw her kunai to the side. Sakura quickly took the last one out of her mouth, but Sasuke predicted her movements and kicked her wrist, and the kunai went flying in the air in the other direction, causing her to glare in response.

He then swung his blade viciously towards her, but she dodged every attack. He plunged his blade forward, she ducked around it, and quickly grabbed his wrist and twisting it outward, causing him to become off balanced. She swiftly swept him in the back of the knees, causing him to flip on his back. She sat on his torso and held her fist high, glaring into his eyes and pumping chakra into her fist.

"It's ove –"

Instant pain shot through Sakura's system, and the curse mark pounded against her skin. Her eyes widened and she flinched in pain, causing her grip to loosen.

Sasuke took this chance and flipped her over, holding her hands above her head and sitting on her own torso, forgetting about his blade that lay close to them on the ground. She looked up at him with a pained look in her eyes, which Sasuke immediately noticed and scanned her body for a major injury, but found none.

"What's wrong?" he demanded. She gritted her teeth and closed her eyes, tightening them shut from the pain. "Sakura, answer me!" he commanded in a strict tone. She opened her eyes, glaring at him with a strong sense of hate.

"Why do you suddenly care?!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. This caught Sasuke off guard, and he simply stared at her.

"Sakura!" they heard someone yell. They both looked to their side to see her teammates rushing at them. Daichi stopped in his tracks and his eyes widened in an anime-like manner, pointing at him infuriatingly.

"Nandeyo?!" he shouted. "Get off my future wife!" he yelled again, causing Sasuke and Sakura to sweatdrop. Sakura twitched in annoyance.

"Baka," she mumbled to herself. Sasuke got off of her and backed up as Ryuu and Daichi ran towards her and bent down next to her, checking her for any injuries. Tsubasu stood in front of her in a protective manner. Sasuke looked into his eye stoically.

"I'm bringing her back to Konoha," he stated emotionlessly.

Tsubasu merely raised his hand to his blade and started to unsheathe it with a click.

"She's staying with us," he demanded.

"Stop, Tsubasu," she said.

Everyone immediately gazed at her, her hair covering her eyes to hide the expression within them. She stood up slowly, walking over to Sasuke until she was directly in front of him. Her head jerked up, intensely glaring into his eyes; he could see the hate for him inside them.

"Let me tell you something, Uchiha," she spat. "You have no right to come barging in to my life and think that you can tell me what to do. I don't know why you went back to Konoha, or why all of a sudden you're trying to bring me back, but you don't know my story either. I am not, I repeat, not going back to Konoha until my mission is complete, and you can't change my mind!" she yelled, poking him firmly in his chest, as if trying to come across a point.

He simply stared at her without emotion, but she could see the wheels turning in his head.

"Fine; then I'll stay with you until your 'mission' is complete," he stated simply. Sakura's eyes widened in surprise, and then covered it with a glare.

"Excuse me?! Hell no! You're going back to Konoha –"

"My mission was to bring you back, so until you're ready to go, I'm not going anywhere," he declared. Sakura stared at him for a minute, thinking to herself, and then gritted her teeth together, quickly spinning around and walking a few feet before stopping.

"Fine! Do whatever the hell you want! Just don'tget in my way," she growled before storming past her worried teammates and through the trees, heading back to the campsite.

Sasuke plainly sheathed his blade, put his hands in his pockets, and casually walked past her teammates.

Ryuu defiantly stared at him as he walked by, gritting his teeth together and was about to attack him when Tsubasu put his arm in front of him, stopping him in his tracks. Tsubasu looked him in the eyes and stared strongly for a few seconds, as if they were reading each other's minds. Ryuu sighed unhappily and nodded before they both walked after them.

Daichi put his hands behind his head lazily while looking forward in an anime-like manner.

"…Teme…" he spat before walking after them.


	7. Hiding Behind a Mask

The illuminating circle rose, its rays squeezing through the gaps of the mountains. The gliders of the sky, wings spread pompously, soared easily through the clouds as the wind seeped through their feathers to give them flight. Their chants of joy, though bothersome, echoed across the hills, heard by the travelers that lie beneath them. One of those voyagers had again gazed up infuriatingly at the birds, hoping his stare of antipathy had thrown off their path of flight, knocking them into of pit of inaudibility.

Sasuke then sat up, his back scraping against the bark behind him as a soundless sigh escaped his lips. The chirping of the birds above caused him to lose sleep, something he valued tremendously. He glowered, his eyes shut from resentment. However, his thoughts of irritation had been altered upon becoming distracted – the three males he had met previously rose from their positions in their sleeping bags simultaneously, as if stuck to an arranged schedule, and began to gather their things.

His gaze fixated on the female of the group, her pink hair sticking up in random places due to turning unceasingly through her slumber. A few minutes after her teammates, she rose, stretching her seemingly aching muscles before she stood from her small sleeping bag and stuffed it into her sack. The darkened color beneath her eyes puffed out ever so slightly, displaying how distraught she was from the events earlier that week. Her gaze averted from Sasuke's, her form giving off an indignant aura.

She scrimmaged through her pack, pulling out a scroll and unraveling it until it spread out fully on the ground. Her eyes scanned its contents fastidiously, her fingers lifting to her rosy locks to brush them back behind her ear to avoid the hindering of her vision. Upon the rest packing their necessities, they strolled over to her, bending down and circling around the scroll.

Curiously, Sasuke jumped down from the tree, walking over to stand behind one of them. He inspected the scroll, inwardly declaring that it was a map of the Ninja Nations.

"I was thinking a lot last night," Sakura started off. "Once my ex-teammates get back to Konoha, Tsunade, the Hokage, won't hesitate to send an ANBU team after me. We need to get rid of our trail and head in another direction," she exclaimed, ignoring Sasuke's presence.

He almost raised her eyebrow at this, although, he wasn't quite surprised after her reaction towards him last night.

"I was thinking about heading to Iwagakure and getting as much information as possible along the way," she said, looking mainly at Tsubasu. "There are many villages that we could cover, and once we're done there, we can continue to head east," she finished, her fingertip brushing along the paper across the Earth Country and towards Takigakure. He nodded in response.

"I agree," he stated, followed by a nod from Daichi, who was clearly bored.

"That's a great idea, Sakura-chan," Ryuu exclaimed happily before he scanned the Uchiha through his peripheral, noticing how he was intently staring at Sakura. He almost glared, but he kept his cool.

They stood to their feet, placing their bags securely on their backs and faced the designated direction. Sasuke opened his mouth to ask what their mission was, but he was cut off abruptly.

"Yosh! Let's go!" Daichi shouted proudly with his bag on his back and pointing out into the forest ahead of him, clearly ready to go. He started walking ahead, followed by a sweatdrop from everyone else.

"You doknow that you're heading in the wrong direction, right?" Tsubasu exclaimed. Daichi halted, quickly turning around and stomping in the other direction.

"Forward march!" he said proudly, as if acting like he wasn't embarrassed. Sasuke gazed at him in stupidity. He was like a sick merge of Suigetsu and Naruto put together – but weirder – if that was humanly possible. Everyone followed after him, not muttering a word about his hyper behavior.

* * *

The travel through the forest seemed to be endless, their movements of pushing off of branches and landing on another becoming more than redundant. Leaves and sticks had frequently brushed their skin, leaving a slightly reddish gash to appear against the paleness – or darkness – of their bodies. The sound of rushing wind had either become a ringing screech in their ears, or a subtle sound for those who let their thoughts consume their mentality. Sasuke was the latter.

He looked up towards the sky, the branches blurring above him as he passed them by. His mind was disbursed with thoughts; thoughts of a certain kunoichi who rushed through the forest ahead of him. Never would he think that they would in this position: he desperately attempting to pull her back to the place she longed to protect. However, days before she stood up against her old comrades with an iron fist, prodding away the declarations of friendship and deliverance. Memories from a month ago sprouted in his mind.

"_After she had not been seen for almost a week, ANBU infiltrated her home once she didn't come to the rendezvous point for the next mission. Her parents were found dead and she was gone," Naruto said sadly, stuttering every other word. Tears filled his eyes, but he refused to let them fall. Sasuke stood there in silence, at a loss for words. _

"_Who took her?" he asked angrily. Naruto, surprised at his concern, ignored the confusion he was feeling and shook his head._

"_We don't know." _

If she had been taken two and a half years ago, why had she not returned upon being released? She had exclaimed the significance of her mission earlier, but how could she have an undertaking outside of her own village? Had she absentmindedly declared a mission and sought to leave the village willingly? If so, why were her parents murdered? She would not have done that herself – she cherished her family more than anything, and she loved Konoha and everyone within it too much to just leave without an avowal. A captor was the only alternative.

But, who was this mysterious abductor? His eyes roamed the three males around him, an immediate thought springing to his mind. If they had captured her, she would have fought them off – not accompany them eagerly. Sakura was much too stubborn to accept defeat so easily. She would have given her life before she let herself be used by the enemy.

So what were the reasons for convoying these three? They seemed protective of her – too protective. They clearly had a bond between them, something instigated by a common association. But, what was that link?

"I'm starving! When are we gonna stop for food?" Daichi complained, Sakura rolling her eyes in response. This seemed to be an instant reaction to Daichi's complaints these days.

"There should be a tea shop up ahead. We'll stop and get something to eat," Tsubasu stated. Daichi grinned, his sharp, wolf-like teeth appearing from behind his pale lips.

* * *

After another ten minutes, a little tea shop came into view just below a large mountain range. The placement seemed perfect, its location positioned just along the pathway for travelers to stop by for a warm meal. The outside of the shop seemed outdated, scratches and dirt covering, yet blending in with the worn out, brown colored timber. "Green Tea House" humbly prevailed on the rooftop, its wording slightly crooked from the gust of air as it tapped repeatedly against the wood behind it. The wind chimes dangled from the edge of the roof, knocking against each other from the subtle breeze as a soft, yet repetitive ring reverberated from them.

Once entering the tea shop, they eyed the room, instantly claiming the only open kotatsu in the corner. Sakura bent down to her knees, placing herself comfortably on the cushion closest to the wall for the availability of gazing out the window.

Sasuke, who was about to seat himself next to her, glared maddeningly when Ryuu stepped in front of him. Ryuu positioned himself down on the orange cushion, grinning warmly to the girl next to him. Seemingly oblivious to his own actions, he ignored the defiant stare that penetrated through his skull. The rest of the group filled the open seats.

After a few minutes of an awkward silence, the waitress walked up to their table – a pen and pad in hand – with a bright smile covering her face.

"What can I get you guys?"

"We'll share a plate of onigiri and some green tea," Tsubasu said stoically to the waitress, cutting Daichi off before he ordered everything on the menu. She smiled in response, casting glances at all of the male figures and ignoring Sakura, who sat at the end.

"It will be out right away," she said, winking towards them before strutting off, her hips swaying deliberately with every step she took. Sakura rolled her eyes. Daichi laughed in response.

"Oi, Sakura-chan, I bet you were jealous that our waitress was hitting on me!" he said proudly, his thumb extended towards himself. Sakura chuckled humorously.

"I highly doubt that she was flirting with you, baka," she stated. He scoffed in response, leaning more on the kotatsu.

Sasuke and Tsubasu remained quiet, their eyes closed. Ryuu, who decided to change the subject, looked beside him towards Sakura.

"How long are we going to stay in Iwagakure?" he asked her. She looked down, as if calculating things in her mind.

"Well, Iwagakure is a pretty large village and there is a large population. It will take us a few days for us to find some information about his whereabouts," Sakura stated. Sasuke opened his eyes, lifting his head to look at her.

"Whose whereabouts?" he asked. Ryuu glared at him.

"It's none of your bus –"

"We are trying to find out where Orochimaru is located," Sakura stated, glaring at her folded hands on the table.

The atmosphere automatically tensed as each individual had many thoughts and memories running through their minds. A silence swept over the group, the voices around them becoming inaudible and the figures becoming forgotten.

Sasuke kept his stare on the female across from her, his eyes roaming her facial features, as if attempting to depict a fault in her proclamation. He waited for her to burst out into a brash laugh that would echo throughout the room, her smile stretching from ear to ear in amusement. However, it never came. Her emerald eyes glowered back into his, resolve and determination residing within them. His eyebrows furrowed, his deep voice breaking the uncomfortable silence.

"Orochimaru is dead."

"No, he's not," Tsubasu responded stoically from beside him. Sasuke glared subconsciously.

"I killed him over three years ago," he interjected.

"He's alive, Sasuke. We don't know how, but he's alive. You don't have to believe us," Sakura stated, not meeting his gaze. He was about to say something when the waitress came back with their food, cutting him off.

"Enjoy!" she said, looking towards them and winking again before beaming off. Daichi frowned once seeing the two small plates of food in front of them. How was he supposed to share all of this food?! He was a growing man, you know! Even after years of eating a limited amount of food, it never ceased to surprise him every time he shot a glimpse of his meal.

* * *

After fifteen minutes of Daichi's constant chattering, they paid their bill, retreating from the tea shop and hiking down the pathway towards the border of the Earth Country. Daichi placed his arms behind his head, gazing up towards the sky, as if trying to find something to think about because of the awkward silence that seemed to consume the group.

His head casted back downward, observing the actions of the others. Tsubasu was casually walking in front of the group in a stoic manner, causing Daichi roll his eyes. He thought he was so cool, but not cooler than him! He could probably beat him in one move.

His eyes then glanced over to Ryuu, who was walking with his eyes closed, as if he was secretly debating within his own mind. What the hell is he thinking about? He didn't ponder on it too much as he gazed at both Sasuke and Sakura.

They were walking close to each other, yet keeping themselves at a distance. He squinted his eyes, as if there was something in the atmosphere that he could only catch with super vision. The aura between them seemed odd and awkward, as if they were total strangers. If he recalled correctly, they used to be teammates, right? He was surprised they weren't constantly talking about the old days. Maybe there was something he was missing. And why was she so pissed at him all the time?

"Oi, Sakura-chan, Chicken-Butt," he called out to them, giving Sasuke a nickname resembling his hair. They both turned around, Sasuke giving him a glare, and Sakura – a blank stare.

"What is it?" Sakura asked him, as though she was just cut off from being deep in thought. He gave them a lazy, yet curious look.

"You guys used to be teammates, right?" he asked. She blinked in curiosity, not liking where the question was heading to. Ryuu and Tsubasu also looked over, whose attention was now caught.

"Yeah, why?" she asked hesitantly, not really wanting to hear the answer. He shrugged.

"Why are you acting like you hate him?" he asked ever-so-bluntly. Sakura's eyes widened, and then she looked to the ground, glaring and avoiding everyone's gaze.

"I don't hate him," she muttered. This caused Sasuke to glance at her, hearing the hesitance in her voice. Daichi blinked obliviously.

"But, Sakura –"

"Daichi, leave it alone," Tsubasu prodded, glaring at him with his visible eye. Sakura then turned around, closed her eyes, and walked forward past everyone else. Ryuu reached out, as if he was about to say something, but his voice was caught in his throat.

_Sakura-chan…_

Sasuke stared at her back unemotionally. He seemed unaffected, but inwardly, questions raced around his mind. Daichi grouched, throwing his arms in the air in exasperation.

"Eh! You're so bossy, Tsubasu-teme," Daichi spat. Tsubasu glared.

"Maybe if you weren't so loquacious, and supercilious, I wouldn't have to tell you to shut up all the time," Tsubasu exclaimed, causing Daichi to give him a livid, yet confused look.

"I-If I knew what that meant, I would give you an ass kicking!" Daichi yelled, causing Tsubasu to sweatdrop.

"You're an idiot."

* * *

The sun had had come and gone, leaving the moon to watch over the night. The illuminating rays from this orb reflected off of still waters, ripples appearing occasionally when a fish would snag a hovering mosquito. The animals of the night were silenced, except for an occasional owl whose hoot seemed to ring through their ears. The only thing that was heard by trekkers would be the ruffling of leaves as the team of ninjas swiftly traveled through the forest, their steps imperceptible and untraceable. Their hair and clothes fluttered, the wind caressing them as they hopped from branch to branch.

Daichi, proudly leading the front, held a smirk on his face as he occasionally glimpsed at his teammate, Tsubasu, who followed him from behind. He rolled his eyes every so often when he could feel Daichi's pride radiating off his body like a vent.

Ryuu trailed behind Tsubasu, casting glances at the female of the group through his peripheral to confirm she was still there. He was secretly afraid; afraid that when he looked back, she would be gone – taken captive by the Uchiha who would not leave her side. His eyes curved into slits, casting a glare towards him. It was unseen by Sasuke, however, and he enforced himself to turn his head.

The said female, Sakura, was right in front of Sasuke; she too gave glances back at the person behind her, hoping that the male suddenly vanished upon finding a reason to leave, but he was always there, monitoring them like a hawk. Pun intended.

She growled, her eyes shutting in displeasure. Oh, how she would love nothing more than that – for him to suddenly disappear with no awkward goodbyes, no apathetic mumbles to grace their ears. But, thinking about it now, it seemed too bittersweet. Though the Uchiha was known for being uncaring, he was equally recognized as being stubborn. So, compelling him to leave would be unsuccessful and exhausting. The best she could do, however, was to ignore him and continually to secretly hope that this was some sort of nightmare that would come to an end.

She spun her head towards the front, letting her mind wander to concentrate on something else. Consequently, the first thing that came to mind was her old friends and comrades.

She wondered what the reactions would have been when Naruto ran back to the village to proclaim her existence and her obduracy to not return. Would they be hurt? Afraid? Concerned? Angered? It seemed so long ago that she walked the streets of the Leaf Village as a resident – so long ago that she could barely remember the smiling faces of those she once called friends. Acquaintances seemed more accurate now, people who only have a slight knowledge of her current life or none at all. She continued to reminisce in the past, and once again, unfortunately and inevitably, her contemplations reverted to Sasuke.

Why had the Uchiha willingly returned to Konoha? He had openly declared his resentment towards the village when he held a sharpened blade towards her neck with the intent to kill. That was something she would never forget – his bloodthirsty, Sharingan eyes glaring at her, his whitened knuckles tightening around the tarnished hilt of his sword, his lips tightening from the grinding of his teeth – like the blood he had spilled, the picture stained into her mind, permanently marking its place, never to be removed from her memory.

Though his stubbornness had done nothing but developed, something about his personality had altered. There seemed to no longer be a vicious characteristic that took over, no strive for power that dominated his decision making. He appeared calm, tactful – somewhat perceptive towards the given occurrence, though he was kept in the dark for most of the happenings. She would usually keep the secrets of their objectives, but she responded to his earlier question at the tea shop with a sort of spite, a grudge that had been placed heavily on her shoulders. But, she knew it wasn't his fault for what was going on, but it relieved some of the pain and stress that clouded her thoughts.

She stopped suddenly, her face coming in contact with someone's back. Her nose scrunched against his spine, causing her to stagger backwards; barely falling off the branch she landed on.

"Ouch," she mumbled, rubbing the tip of her nose while gazing upward at Tsubasu, who she apparently just ran into. He raised his eyebrow at her, causing her to frown. "Sorry," she mumbled.

"We're stopping her for the night," Tsubasu exclaimed, leveling off the branch and heading towards the ground. The rest followed, their feet grinding against the dirt.

"I'm going fishing," Tsubasu stated, unsheathing his blade and heading towards a river that was located not too far from their location. Daichi smiled immediately.

"I'm coming too!" Daichi said, running after him. Sakura turned in the opposite direction.

"I'm going to go look for some wood," she said before walking off.

After a few seconds, she noticed that Sasuke was walking right behind her, his hands stuffed in his pockets. She halted, turning towards him with a scowl.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asked him sternly. He shrugged.

"Making sure you don't run off," he stated simply. Her glare deepened.

"I'm on a mission with my team. You really think I'm going to just run off?" she asked him rhetorically. He shrugged once again.

She turned around, taking a deep breath before sighing in annoyance.

"Whatever," she responded, as if trying to calm herself down. Sasuke continued to follow her, and they both began to look for lumber.

* * *

The fire devoured the wood, scorching the remains until there was nothing left but earthly residue. A constant, crackling noise emanated from it, the flames increasing in size. The heat radiated, pressing against the people who sat around it to warm their bodies.

Daichi prodded the timber with a stick, causing more of a sizzling sound to emit as he continued to speak whole-heartedly, chattering to Ryuu about a memory of his childhood. Ryuu half listened, paying more attention to the thoughts within his own mind as he took another bite of his food.

Tsubasu sat there, quietly, listening to Daichi and Ryuu's conversation every so often. He tore a piece of fish with his teeth, chomping down on the meat in satisfaction.

Sasuke was seated in the tree, crunching down on a bite of apple, the juices pouring onto his taste buds.

Sakura adjusted her seating on the log, staring in front of her, and the fish on the end of the stick in her hands being burned to a crisp by the flames. Her attention was caught, overpowered by memories of the past.

Her thoughts traveled to Orochimaru. They didn't have a strategic plan once they faced him, but they intended on fighting to the death to save future generations from the poisonous bite of the serpent. She would do everything in her will power to bring this menace to an end, even if it meant using the very thing she swore not to use. Her free hand casually slid up to the curse mark on her neck, her fingertips grazing against the blackened tattoo. If there was no other way to defeat him other than to entice the darkness inside of her, she would do it. She gripped her neck, remembering that the Uchiha was sitting in a tree not too far from her.

"Sakura, are you okay?" a voice said, interrupting her thoughts. She blinked down at her fish, which was now completely burnt, and looked up to see her teammates staring at her. She went over the voice in her head, and recalled it was Ryuu who called out to her. Her gaze returned to them, and she felt a stare gazing at her from behind. She pulled up a fake smile.

"Oh, yeah. I'm sorry," she said.

"What were you thinking about?" Daichi asked. Sakura thought for a moment, quickly searching for a lie in the back of her mind, but at the moment, her mind was blank.

"Oh, nothing," she responded before rising to her feet. "I'm going to bed early; I'm a bit tired," she stated, handing Daichi her burnt fish. She walked towards her sleeping bag, sliding down inside of it and turning away from the fire. Ryuu and Daichi looked at each other in confusion as Tsubasu closed his eyes, clearly understanding her thought process. After a few seconds of silence, Tsubasu stood up, looking at his fellow teammates.

"Let's get some sleep. We have a long journey ahead of us," he said, ignoring the Uchiha within the trees. The other two nodded, and they stood up, making their way towards their own sleeping bags. After they were each located in their respective beds, Sasuke watched onto the campsite where everyone previously was, propping himself comfortably against the trunk of the tree. He looked up towards the moon in the sky, which were hidden slightly behind the branches. His mission began running through his head.

It had become clear that Sakura was not going to submit to his earlier proclamations, concluding that he was going to be lingering with their squad for quite some time. He placed his arms behind his head, falling deeper into his subconscious thoughts. He thought it was very ironic – how he just got back to Konoha just to leave again. But, he's serving Konoha now; not chasing after his so-called "dream" anymore. What would Itachi think of him now?

He mentally cringed. _Itachi. _That was such a sore subject for him.

"_Sorry, Sasuke; there won't be a next time." _

Those were his final words as death had finally grasped his soul.

His eyes softened as he gazed deeper in the sky, as if searching for something, but he found nothing.

"_Sasuke, why are you doing this?" _

"_Revenge! I will make sure they will all repay for what they have done –"_

"_Just like your revenge on me?"_

Words had never struck him so hard.

Without another thought, he was instantly consumed by sleep.

* * *

Tsunade clasped her hands directly behind her back, walking mindlessly back and forth in front of the best, tracking ANBU squad Konoha had to offer. Her eyes were cast downward as her mind was racing furiously, filled with thoughts. The ninjas stood proudly, their backs straightened and their faces steadfast, though they were covered by intimidating animal masks. After thinking to herself for a few moments, she stopped and turned to face them with a glare filled with willpower. The squad remained calm as a slight breeze blew past them, causing their hair and clothes to slightly flutter. After a few seconds, Tsunade spoke up.

"As you know, your mission is to bring back Haruno Sakura, Uchiha Sasuke, and whomever Sakura is accompanied by," she said as her eyes scanned the ANBU masks in front of her. "The three ninja that are with her are highly dangerous ninja. With the help of Hyuga Neji's team who came face to face with them, and some research, we received some information on them."

Tsunade scanned the squad, making sure they were ready for the information she was about to give them.

"Your first one is Daichi. Former village: Unknown. Height: 6'1". Elements: Fire and lightning. Weapons: A pair of wristbands. Nara Shikamaru described that he had longer sleeves to hide them," Tsunade informed them. They nodded immediately.

"The second one is named Ryuu. Former village: Unknown. Height: 5'11. Elements: Unknown," she said, scanning the ANBU to see their reactions, but, of course, there was none.

"The third is named Tsubasu. Former village: Kumogakure. Height: 6'2". Elements: Wind and lightning. Weapons: Two blades." She placed her hands behind her back again and looked at them sternly. "Do whatever it takes to bring them back. And do notreturn until the Uchiha and my former apprentice are within your custody. Have I made myself clear?" They all nodded simultaneously.

"Hai, Hokage-sama," they all said in unison. She nodded in response.

"With that, good luck. You are dismissed." They nodded before they all disappeared, causing the air to whip around Tsunade, Shizune, and Ton Ton. Shizune covered her eyes as Tsunade just stared out into the forest outside of Konoha's gates. As the wind calmed down, Tsunade simply stood there, continuing to stare out into the open. Shizune stopped shielding her eyes and gave a worried glance to the Hokage.

"Tsunade-sama," Shizune began in concern.

"They will return with Sakura; I'm sure of it," she said optimistically, as if encouraging herself. Shizune nodded absently.

"Of course they will," she replied. Tsunade then turned to her.

"Shizune, I want you to retrieve Neji, Shikamaru, Naruto, and Ino. I have a mission for them." Shizune nodded quickly before standing up straight.

"Yes ma'am!"


	8. A Petal Lost in the Wind

"We're only here for a couple days or so. We just need to rest and restock on food and supplies," Sakura said with a sincere smile.

The man scanned the five people in front of him carefully; four men and one woman. The man in the very back wore a hood over his head, covering his entire face. That's not suspicious, right? The next one reminded him of a stone; he was tall, muscular, darker in shade, and he seemed very impatient. The one standing next to him creeped him out – he would give him an evil smirk every so often, showing him his wolf-like teeth. The last man was standing relatively close to the pink haired girl; his obsidian eyes were bearing deeply into his own, as if threatening him. The pink-haired girl in front of him seemed innocent – as if she couldn't hurt a fly. But, that's exactly what she wanted him to think.

"Ma'am, I'm sorry, but I can't let you in," the man at the gate enforced, gazing down to the paper in his hands. Sakura gave him an irritated look when he wasn't looking and pouted. After a few seconds of thinking to herself, another idea came to mind. She quietly unzipped her black jacket and leaned forward against the table, revealing some cleavage. Everyone's eyes immediately widened in surprise.

"Please sir, I promise we won't stay for long!" she pouted while blinking her eyes and puckering her lips cutely. The man immediately blushed and subconsciously pulled his collar away from his throat.

"Ma'am…I-I don't know if I can –"

"Please sir! We'll only stay a few days! We're out of food and we have nowhere else to stay!" she persisted, leaning more against the table. He leaned back, as if it would give him something breathing room.

"O-Okay, h-here," the man said, slowly grabbing an admission scroll and handing it to her, not taking his eyes off of her. "J-Just please don't cause any trouble!" he stuttered. She gave him a genuine smile and took the scroll before turning around waving to him.

"Arigatou, Koji-kun!" Her dumbfounded teammates followed her aimlessly. After a few seconds of walking, she smirked, and pushed the scroll into Tsubasu's chest. "That's how it's done," Sakura grinned. Tsubasu huffed in response. Sasuke put his hands in his pockets and rolled his eyes as Daichi and Ryuu wiped their drool away from their chin.

"We need to split up into groups to get some tasks done," Tsubasu said, first looking at Daichi and Ryuu. "Ryuu, make sure you keep your hood on; the last thing we need is for someone to recognize you. This is your old village, right?" Tsubasu asked him. Ryuu nodded in response.

"Hai," He merely said. Tsubasu nodded in return.

"Daichi and Ryuu, go get two hotel rooms and stay in there. We don't need you two causing a scene." He looked over at Sakura. "We need more food and supplies. I'm going to leave that to you," he continued. Sakura nodded in response. "I'm going to see if I can find any information. Let's meet back at the hotel room in a few hours."

After a few seconds, they all headed separate ways. Before Ryuu walked around the corner, he turned his head towards Sakura, seeing Sasuke walking very close to her. He casted him a glare before disappearing around the corner.

After walking a few steps, she looked to her side, feeling a presence. The Uchiha was casually walking beside her with his hands stuffed in his pockets and his gaze directed in front of him. She raised her an eyebrow.

"Are you still going to follow me?" she asked.

"Aa," he replied stoically, causing her huff slightly.

"Whatever," she said before widening her strides so that she was walking in front of the Uchiha. This action almost made him smile. Almost.

The first place she walked to was a fruit stand. She picked a basket and began rummaging the apples, flipping them over carefully to see which ones weren't covered in bruises. After prudently examining them, she took a few and placed them in her basket. She then strolled over to the bananas, picking out the ones that were fairly ripe. She went through the other fruits, inspecting every single fruit they had to find the riper ones. He could tell that she was very picky about things.

After she was done, she searched for her wallet and pulled it out, handing the lady working there some money. She then took the basket and began walking off in another direction as if he wasn't there. He followed suit, but his mind began to wander.

It had been two days since he began to aimlessly follow around Sakura and her team like a lap dog. He stayed unobtrusive, inactive in the background as they sustained their daily routines. He merely kept his eyes on the pink-haired girl, monitoring her movements so she wouldn't suddenly disappear in the blackness to never return. Was it something she would attempt to achieve if she had the slightest chance? He did not know a lot about her now; their relationship had turned to that of an acquaintanceship along with awkward happenings. He observed her more carefully, as if it was something that would help him obtain all the responses to his unanswered questions.

Her physical features had changed tremendously. She still had the short hair, though it was slightly longer, hanging a little past her shoulders, pointing untidily in different directions. If her height had increased, it would not have been that much. He stood at least a foot over her, forcing him to cast his glance downward like a mountain over a tree. Her eyes had lost the innocence she had once held, staring back at him with a sense of determination and courage. It was a side of her that he had never seen.

He pictured himself fighting alongside Naruto as Sakura sat and applauded them on in the background, and then he pictured the girl that he brawled with a couple nights ago. Sasuke hated to admit it, but, they were on even terms. He was even forced to use his Sharingan to dodge Sakura's attacks, her swift and strong engagements becoming too quick for the Uchiha to emulate. She had become immensely faster, physically stronger, and her chakra control was even more phenomenal then what he remembered. To top it all off, she had outstanding medical abilities.

"_Daichi, did you seriously fall into those traps? What kind of ninja are you?"_

"_I'm sorry Sakura-chan! I was too busy staring at your beautiful face. It caused me to not pay attention to where I was going," Daichi said as there was a deep gash in his arm from an old trap that was set up in the forest. She rolled her eyes at his unneeded comment._

"_Just stay still. I'll heal it," Sakura sat down before a ball of chakra surrounded Sakura's hands. And within minutes, the deep gash that was located on Daichi's arm was now gone – as if he hadn't gotten hurt in the first place. Sakura took a towel, poured water onto it, and cleaned off the blood that covered his arm. _

"_Thanks Sakura-chan. What would I do without you?"_

"_You'd probably be dead," Tsubasu replied sarcastically. _

Sasuke was secretly watching that incident from a distance. He was astonished by Sakura's healing abilities. Even Kabuto could not heal such a gash so quickly. It had taken him at least ten minutes to fully heal the wound – when Sakura could finish it in less than three minutes. It was truly remarkable.

Another thing that changed about her was the way she carried herself. She walked with much more confidence, held her head higher than she did when she was younger. Her strides were longer, yet her body seemed more relaxed. He could also tell that now, she never let down her guard. She was often to herself; he could tell that she was trying to build walls around her heart.

"_Sakura-chan," Ryuu said to her, moving around the campfire to seat himself next to her. Ryuu caught both Sakura and Sasuke's attention, although he stayed silent in the tree a few yards away. Sakura gave him a questionable look. _

"_What is it?" She asked. _

"_Are you okay? You seem as if you're deep in thought," he asked her sincerely. She stared at him for a moment, and then gave him a smile. _

"_Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry about it, Ryuu." Sasuke could see through her fake smile. _

Why had she tried to be so reclusive? She used to expose her feelings, wearing her heart on her sleeve for the world to see. She even openly proclaimed her love for him before he left the village. Thinking about it now, maybe he was the reason that she was trying so hard to protect her heart? He could tell that she kept trying to become secluded from everyone and trying to keep things to herself.

Sasuke wasn't sure what to think of everything, but the one thing he did know was that Sakura was a new person. What happened when Sakura disappeared so many years ago? Was this the reason for the sudden change in her? He began to widen his strides until he was directly next to her. Sakura looked at him through her peripheral vision, but continued to walk forward. His voice surprised her.

"You seem to be close to your team," he said, starting a conversation. This caused her to look up at him curiously, but then she returned her gaze to the road in front of her.

"Uhm, yeah," she said, not really knowing how to respond to his accusation.

"How did you meet them?" he asked, not looking at her. She thought for a moment to herself before she responded truthfully.

"They saved my life," she said. He looked down at her for a second, but then lifted his head back up.

"Were they the reasons you left Konoha?" he asked. This caused her to stop and look at him. Her surprised gaze slowly formed into a glare.

"Excuse me, but I didn't leaveKonoha," she spat, emphasizing the word 'leave.' He stopped and turned to her, unfazed by her anger.

"Then what happened?" he asked stoically. She stared at him for a moment before looking to her side, unable to look at him in the eyes.

"I can't tell you," she stated. His gaze didn't falter.

"Why not?" he asked simply. She took a deep breath, and slowly let it out, searching for answers in her head.

"Because it's none of your business," she said, gritting her teeth. He almost took a step closer, as if it would gain him more information.

"Sakura, just tell me," he said. She looked him straight in his eyes.

"And why should I? What have you ever done for me, Uchiha?" she said, glaring at him. He stood quiet for a few seconds, unable to respond to her question. When receiving no answer, she walked in the other direction. He watched her back as she marched off. Maybe this was a thicker wall than he thought.

* * *

"What kind of mission, Hokage-sama?" Ino asked curiously. Standing beside Ino was Neji, Shikamaru, and Naruto.

"A very important one, Ino," she answered. "I'm sending two of you to Kumogakure, and two of you to Iwagakure. You're going to be heading to the Raikage and the Tsuchikage to get some information on a couple people," she finished. Naruto scrunched his nose in disgust, as if he smelled something bad.

"But Baa-chan! Why can't you give me a mission that has to do with helping Sakura return to Konoha?!" he yelled. Tsunade immediately shouted back.

"This mission doeshave to do with returning Sakura home," she said. Naruto flinched before letting himself relax.

Tsunade looked down at her desk and sighed before looking back at the four shinobis in front of her.

"I'm splitting you four up into two groups. Neji and Naruto, you'll be heading up towards Iwagakure. Shikamaru and Ino, you'll be heading up to Kumogakure. I want you to go up to the leaders of your designated countries and find out as much as you can about Ryuu and Tsubasu. These are two of the three men that were accompanying Sakura," she said, pulling out two scrolls, handing them to Neji and Shikamaru, who stepped forward and took them. "These scrolls are to be given to the Raikage and the Tsuchikage for the mission details."

Neji and Shikamaru nodded in response.

"Hai, Tsunade-sama," they said. Tsunade leaned in, locking eyes with Naruto.

"Once you obtain enough information, I want you to return to Konoha immediately_. _No running off with this newfound information to go searching for her on your own; understood?" Naruto thought for a second before slowly nodding.

"Hai," he replied sadly. Tsunade leaned back in her chair and relaxed her composure.

"Good, you are dismissed."

* * *

"Tsuchikage-sama!" a ninja said, knocking on the door of the village leader. He looked up at the door from his scroll before looking back down to it.

"Come in," he exclaimed. The ninja opened the door, walked in, and closed the door before walking in front of his desk and bowing in respect.

"Gomen," he apologized before standing up straight, holding out a scroll in front of him. "But I have urgent news from Konohagakure," he exclaimed, holding up the message in his hands that they just received from a travel hawk. The elder looked up from his scroll again and took it. He slowly opened it up. A picture fell from the scroll, and he picked it up and looked at it for a second before he started reading the contents.

_Dear Tsuchikage-san,_

_ In this picture is my former apprentice, Haruno Sakura, who went missing about three years ago. She is currently with three other individuals. If they enter through your village, please capture them immediately. I will send ANBU to your village so that they may be escorted back. _

_ Sincerely, _

_ The Hokage_

The Tsuchikage looked back down at the picture for a moment before holding it up to the shinobi in front of him.

"Koji. Have you seen this girl enter through our village?" He asked. Koji scanned the picture before his eyes widened.

"Y-Yes sir. Her and four other people came in just this morning," he stuttered. The Tsuchikage sighed.

"Geez, I'm getting too old for this. Send some shinobi to find them and capture them immediately."

* * *

"Bam!" Daichi yelled. "And he was knocked out in seconds flat," he said, leaning against his chair with his arms crossed, smiling triumphantly. Everyone immediately sweatdropped.

"I like how your story had three different plots," Tsubasu exclaimed, making Sakura and Ryuu laugh.

"Nani?! That's not true!" Daichi yelled, stiffening his body.

"You mean like your story?" Ryuu asked him with a smile. Daichi was about to argue, but he stopped and slouched in his chair, pouting like a child.

"Tch, whatever!" he huffed. Sasuke watched Sakura as she laughed and bit into the last piece of her apple before throwing it away into the trashcan beside her.

"Well guys, I'm heading to bed," she said before stretching her arms and walking towards the door. Ryuu raised an eyebrow.

"Who's staying with you?" he asked, inwardly wishing she would say him. She half turned and smiled at them sincerely.

"This is my only chance to get away from you boys. I'm sleeping by myself tonight," she said before taking her room's key and the extra so that she wouldn't have a chance of them interrupting her alone time.

Sasuke immediately got up to interject, but she stopped him halfway.

"And I'm not leaving to go anywhere. So just calm yourself down and stay in here," she said sternly before smiling at the rest of her comrades. "Goodnight!" she said before quickly shutting the door behind her. Daichi pouted.

"Damn," he said. Tsubasu immediately rolled his eyes, getting on the single bed. Ryuu immediately sat on the couch next to him, and Sasuke claimed the comfortable chair in the corner of the room, facing the large, glass sliding door which looked down onto the beautiful scenery of Iwagakure. After a few minutes, Daichi looked around the room, seeing no more open place to sleep, causing his eyes widened.

"Oi oi oi oi!" Daichi yelled quickly. "Where the hell am I supposed to sleep?!" he shouted. Tsubasu lay against the bed with his hands behind his head and with his eyes closed.

"On the floor. That's where dogs belong, don't they?" he rhetorically asked, causing Ryuu to laugh. Daichi looked at him angrily.

"Hey you bastard! Shut the hell up! I'm not a dog!" he shouted again.

"Then quit acting like one."

"Tch. Whatever."

Sasuke stared out at the full moon that hung high in the sky. He folded his arms behind his head, quietly listening to the two fighting behind him. Memories immediately began flooding into his mind – they acted just as they did when they were genin. Sasuke acted just like Tsubasu – a very strong, determined, reserved individual who made smart remarks to the loud, obnoxious, annoying one of the group – Daichi. Now that he thought about it, why was it that those two were just like himself and Naruto? Maybe it was just a coincidence. Or maybe it was the irony of it all?

* * *

Sakura laid herself down comfortably on the bed in the middle of the hotel room, pulling the comforters over her body and laying on her side so she could look out of the glass sliding door on the other side of the room. She curled up in a ball, staring at the full moon in the sky that loomed brightly in the dusk. Now that she was alone and isolated temporarily from her team and from everything, she could quietly think to herself.

She had been trying very hard to ignore the Uchiha. It had only been a couple days that he had been here, but she was quickly growing accustomed to being constantly around him – which was something she definitely did not want. She would glance at him from time to time, partaking the feeling that she was being watched. And there he was, watching her like an eagle. This was certainly something she wasn't used to. When they were younger, she couldn't even get him to give a glance at her. Now, she couldn't make him look away. It was as if he looked away, she would have suddenly disappeared.

But, why did he care? That's right - he didn't. She had to keep reminding herself that, because there was a small part of her that wanted him to care, a tiny little voice in the back of her head that reminded her of her genin self that kept obliging her to approach him and to tell him the truth about what was going on. But, she couldn't do that; she just couldn't.

"_Then what happened?" _

"_I can't tell you." _

"_Why not?" _

"_Because it's none of your business." _

Why couldn't she tell him? Because she wasn't that young girl that needed to be saved. She was a grown, mature woman who could take care of herself. Telling Sasuke what truly happened would be letting a little bit of him in her heart, and once she did that, things would slowly and surely go back to the way things used to be – with Sakura standing in the background, being protected. like they had always been.

She needed to push him away; push him as far back as she could so he could fully see her. She was different now. She was strong – stronger than she could have ever imagined. Just because Sasuke randomly showed up into her life wasn't going to change anything. She had a mission to complete.

_I looked up, gazing into the sharp, yellow eyes that everyone around me feared so much. I glared at him and made sure that my strength remained firm. I would not let him intimidate me. _

This was her top priority now – killing the man that took everything away from her -

"_Ahhhh, SSSSSSakura-chaaan," he slithered out sinisterly from his royal chair against the back wall of the room. The guards pushed me to the ground, and my knees collapsed from beneath me. He spiked his chakra, as if he was mocking me. I glowered at the ground and tried moving my wrists, but they were still tied behind me. I flexed my hands and pulled my wrists apart as strong as I could. However, all of my strength and chakra had vanished a long time ago._

The man that was responsible for the death of her parents -

"_Don't even try. Even if you could break through that rope, you wouldn't be able to run; you're too weak."_

The man that killed and destroyed the lives of so many innocent people -

_He stared at me hungrily and licked his lips, making me slightly shiver. I slowly felt my vision fading, and I knew I was going to be unconscious soon, and if not healed – dead._

The man that took her away from her home and her friends -

"_Now, you're mine!" Orochimaru shrieked as his head and neck shot out at me. I wanted so badly to move, but my body was frozen in place. I simply sat there on my knees, watching as he got closer and closer. Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain rush through my body. I screamed, but I could no longer hear anything around me. My body felt like it was on fire from the inside out, yet there was nothing that seemed to touch me besides his lingering fangs and the new, foreign chakra that seeped deep within my veins._

She had one goal in life – to defeat him, to kill him, so that he could no longer do to anyone else what he did to her. And so that she could live in peace without constantly looking over her shoulder.

_In mere seconds, I felt as though I was going to die from pain and exhaustion. My eyelids grew even heavier, and they started to slowly shut. Before long, my body collapsed._

This mission was her top priority, and no one was going to stand in her way; not even the Uchiha.

_The last thing I saw was Orochimaru's satisfied face, with a smirking Kabuto standing beside him. Before I had realized anything, it was too late. I was one of Orochimaru's tools._


	9. More Than What is Seen

The palm of a hand pressed against the tarnished wood of the door and pushed it open, an inaudible creaking sound emitting from the hinges. The light from the hallway emanated onto the floor of the room, the pink-haired figure on the bed remained motionless except for the slow rising of her chest.

Two figures gradually ambled in the room, their ninja sandals scuffling against the floorboard. They approached the bed, staring at her back as they became adjacent to her body.

The figure in the front performed a hand sign as chakra began to swirl around his fingertips.

The one behind him stood with a rope in hand ready to pounce once the adversary was unconscious.

He rose up his hand to the ceiling, gazing at the pressure point that would render her unconscious upon impact. He shot his hand down swiftly, directing his movements towards her neck.

Sakura hastily twisted her body, grabbing his wrist and pulling his body downward. She hurled herself forward, rolling off of his back towards the man who was behind him. She kicked him square in the chest, causing him to fly backwards into the door, breaking it on contact. She landed on the ground and twisted the man's wrist; turning them both around and slamming him face first into the wall, knocking him unconscious.

The other figure quickly got back up, pulled out a kunai and ran at her. She quickly stepped backwards a few steps. He pursued forward, aiming the point of his kunai at her, but she effectively dodged his assaults, one by one. He aimed a wheel kick at her head, but she ducked under it and grabbed it, shifting her weight so she could pick him up and throw him against the wall.

Suddenly, she heard the sound of glass breaking, and she gazed behind her to see two pairs of chains come in through the now broken, sliding glass door. She attempted to jump back, but she was too late – the chains began to wrap around her forearms. With a yank from her enemy, she began to stumble forward. Accurately landing her feet on the ground, she pumped chakra into them while bending her knees, using her strength to hold herself to the floorboard.

Sounds of pattering feet were heard from the hallway. She looked back, spotting more Iwa ninja sprinting towards her. She pumped chakra into her hands and wrapped them around the chain before pulling her enemy towards her and through the opening of the broken window. With a battle cry, she threw her enemy back, and he slammed into the other ninjas who entered the room.

* * *

Everyone in the room quickly sat up with a jolt, hearing a loud crash. They all looked at each other while listening quietly, and they heard more loud crashes coming from Sakura's room.

"Kuso," Sasuke quietly muttered, quickly putting on his shoes and clothes while assembling his other essential items. Everyone followed suit, muttering their own curse words underneath their breaths.

"Damn it, I was having the best dream," Daichi slurred, still half asleep. They all quickly ran out of the room – Sasuke being the first one out.

* * *

She took this as her chance and quickly strapped on her boots, pouch, and jacket before she quickly gathered together her other belongings.

"This stuff always happens to me," she muttered silently before slinging her bag over her shoulder. She looked to the open door to see Sasuke running in, followed by the rest of her team.

"What happened?" Sasuke immediately asked, cutting off Ryuu, who gave him a glare. Sakura was oblivious to his actions.

"I just got attacked by Iwa nin. Tsunade must have sent word to them – we need to leave; now," she slurred hurriedly. Her team nodded in response and they began running towards the broken window.

Sakura was about to follow when suddenly her arm was grabbed from behind. She looked back to see Sasuke tightly holding onto her forearm.

"What are you doing?" she demanded. He looked at her straight in the eyes.

"My mission is to bring you back," he said, realizing that this was the perfect opportunity for him. Her team immediately stopped and gazed back, comprehending what was going on.

Sasuke was about to take Iwagakure's side and try to bring her back to Konoha.

Sakura glared.

"I can't go back yet," she began. "I have to finish my mission."

"And I have to finish mine," he responded, staring into her eyes, secretly hoping she and her team wouldn't make this difficult. This was the only fair chance he had at capturing her. He had Iwagakure on his side instead of one against four. This was his best chance and he needed to take it.

She took a deep breath and thought to herself for a moment, letting her body relax under his touch.

"Sasuke, please," she pleaded as her eyes immediately softened. "Please, just let me do this. I'll return to Konoha once my duty with my team is done," she said while she deeply gazed into his eyes, showing him the determination and insistency in her eyes.

Sasuke stared into them for a moment before slowly letting go of her arm.

"On one condition," he said to her. She thought for a moment before nodding in response.

"What?" she asked cautiously.

"Let me help you," he said, not breaking the eye contact with her. She looked deeply in his eyes, as if searching for something. When she concluded to herself that she found nothing, she slowly responded.

"Okay," she said. After a moment of silence, she slowly turned around and looked at her team.

"Let's go," she demanded. They watched her for an instant and nodded in response, even though they secretly didn't agree with the idea. Sasuke and Sakura ran behind them, and they jumped out, landing on a roof and began hopping from rooftop to rooftop.

"There they are! Get them!" they heard someone shout from behind. They all glanced backwards to see a few dozen ninjas following them.

Sakura bit her lip. _Kuso. _

"We need to split up!" Tsubasu whispered to his team. "Daichi, Ryuu, head directly south." He said, looking at them while simultaneously jumping on the rooftops. "Sakura, come with me; we're going to head east." Once he stopped talking, Sakura looked at Sasuke.

"Sasuke, go with Daichi and Ryuu," she said, looking in his eyes. He was about to object to her request, but she cut him off. "If you're going to help me on my mission, you need to trust me," she ended. Thoughts immediately began running through his head. Should he trust that she wouldn't run off? Would she be okay without him there to protect her? Like she said, he needed to trust her.

He thought for another moment, but then closed his eyes.

"Hn," he responded. Tsubasu continued.

"We'll meet up in the forest. Go!" he whispered. In a split second, they all stopped on the rooftops they were on and immediately changed their direction.

The leader of the ninjas glared, signaling his ninjas to split up into groups and follow them.

Daichi, Ryuu, and Sasuke jumped from rooftop to rooftop with the Iwa ninjas following suit. As they were running, they felt a disturbance in the air and looked above, seeing an arrow covered with rock shards heading straight towards them. Ryuu's eyes widened.

"Move!" he yelled. They immediately jumped out of the way and onto the next rooftop, looking back. The arrow head stuck through the top of the building.

"Holy shit. What the hell was that?!" Daichi yelled. Ryuu cringed, realizing what they were dealing with.

"We're being attacked by the Shagekinin of Iwagakure; they're archers. We have to get out of here, or we'll be in huge trouble," he exclaimed, rapidly looking above for the location of his enemies. Sasuke did the same, activating his Sharingan. In a split second, they were rapidly being attacked by deathly arrows.

"We need to split up!" Ryuu said. They immediately jumped off the rooftop and separated, dodging the oncoming arrows. Daichi's wrist blades emitted from his sleeves and he held up his arms, deflecting a few arrows that lobed towards him. He spotted one of them and smirked.

"There you are," he muttered, jumping from rooftop to rooftop, sprinting straight towards the enemy. Once the ninja noticed him heading his way, he grabbed the nock of the arrow and pulled it back against the string.

"Magen: Mienaiya no Jutsu," he whispered to himself as he let go of his aimed arrow. Through Daichi's eyes, it seemed as though the arrow was going to miss him. However, he was oblivious to the fact that he fell for his genjutsu. The arrow pierced straight through his right shoulder, causing him to stop in pain.

"Ngh!" he moaned, causing Sasuke to look up towards him. He was on knees with an arrow through his shoulder, and his enemy was about to finish him off with another arrow through his head. He immediately glared.

"Shit," he said, dodging a few more arrows and disappearing from his position before appearing in front of the Shagekinin. The man stumbled back as Sasuke grabbed the arrow he was about to fire and performed a jutsu.

"Chidori Nagashi!" He quietly yelled. An electrical discharge flowed from his hand, rose up the arrow, and into the archer, shocking his entire body. He screamed out in pain and fell to the ground unconscious.

Sasuke looked back at Daichi, who was bleeding tremendously from his deep shoulder wound. He ran towards him and knelt down, inspecting it. The arrow was completely pierced through his scapula, and the tip of it was sticking out of his back. It was certainly a strong jutsu.

"Damn it, this hurts," Daichi whispered.

"We've got to find Sakura," Sasuke said as he took one of Daichi's arms and slung it over his shoulder, helping him stand up. They immediately disappeared.

Ryuu ducked out of the way of many of the shinobi's attacks. He jumped back quickly and glanced everywhere around him. There were four Shagekinin in the rooftops above him, and eleven regular shinobi in front of him. He then glanced to his side, seeing Sasuke helping an injured Daichi. He then cringed, looking towards his enemies in front of him. He'd have to take them all himself since Sasuke had his hands full.

The other ninjas then ran towards him quickly, seeing how they now had the upper advantage. Ryuu performed a hand sign when realizing everyone now had their eyes on him.

"Genjutsu Shibari!" he whispered. All of his enemies instantly halted upon becoming immobile. The four Shagekinin, who were slightly leaned over the edges of the rooftops, fell forward to the ground. The eleven ninjas in front of him stood still, flabbergasted at what was happening.

"A binding technique," one of them muttered to himself. Ryuu smirked and pulled out a kunai with an explosive tag attached to it.

"Not exactly," he said to him before he threw it at the ground in front of them. Their eyes widened, and the tag exploded. Ryuu jumped over to Sasuke, who was holding Daichi, and they both made their way east, heading towards the forest where Sakura and Tsubasu were supposed to be.

* * *

Tsubasu and Sakura were running directly beside each other. He looked over towards her and gave her a nod. She nodded back, and they both split off into opposite directions. The leader yelled at his team.

"Don't let them get away!" he shouted. They split off once more, eight shinobi each following someone. Sakura landed in the streets and took a sharp left, her feet sliding against the gravel as she ran into an alleyway. She reached into her pouch and retrieved a thin wire, wrapping it around her fingers and pulling it apart using her teeth.

The shinobi team quickly took the sharp left, immediately stopping at the entrance of the alleyway. There was no girl in sight, a silence consuming the area.

One of them signaled for two of them to walk forward. They nodded and slowly made their way into the dark alley. They looked around, trying to sense a chakra signature.

The rest of the shinobi followed suit, viewing their surroundings. There was a balcony on the left side near the entrance, a few trashcans, and large dumpster against a tall, wooden gate. It was a dead end.

The ninja in the back was walking a few steps until he felt a tug at his ankle. He looked down and realized that a thin wire had wrapped around it and it immediately pulled him upward towards the balcony. He screamed in surprise, causing his teammates to look back towards him. They pulled out their weapons, frantically searching for the girl.

Sakura took this as her opportunity while the ninjas were distracted. She emitted from behind one of the trashcans near the dumpster.

The ninja closest to her heard something from behind him, forgetting about his comrade and looked forward, but it was too late.

Sakura performed a spin wheel kick and slammed her foot into his cheek. He flew back into one of his comrades, and they slid against the ground, hitting their heads before going unconscious.

The rest of the five ninjas ran straight towards her. She pulled out two kunai as they came rushing at her with their long blades.

One of them stroked it downward straight at her head. She raised her kunai, blocking his attack and then stepping out of the way of his reach. Another ninja came from her right and aimed it at her side. She plunged her arm forward and instantly blocked it. A spark was ignited from the clash of metal to metal.

She then scanned the other ninjas, now completely surrounded. They all ran at her at once.

She quickly spun on her heel, blocking the ninja who had struck her first, and then continued this motion, blocking every single strike aimed at her. She quickly performed an aerial spin, avoiding the ninja who slid his leg across the ground, attempting to trip her. She turned and completed a few kicks to their arms, knocking them back and then once again blocking the other weapons.

When one of the ninjas fell forward, Sakura kicked him in the middle of his shoulder blades. He went flying towards the opening of the alleyway and slid across the pavement. She glanced back and saw one of the ninjas holding his blade face down in an effort to strike her from behind. She pushed off the ground, turned her body, flipped the hold of the kunai in her hand, and grabbed his wrist. She flung her foot towards him, hitting him in the head. He flew into the wall and sank towards the ground.

She then pumped chakra into her fist and twisted her body once more. Her fist came in contact with the ninja's cheek behind her and he flew into the opposite wall, creating a crater from the impact; he fell to the ground unconscious. She pumped chakra into two of her kunai and threw one at each unconscious target. They stuck through their clothing and into the wall, rendering their movements if they awakened. The last two ninjas ran at her. She did a hand sign and closed her eyes.

"Chakura no Mesu," she whispered. Chakra surrounded her hand, forming into small, sharp blades. She ran towards her target and ducked, sliding her foot towards the ground and tripping her first opponent. She quickly spun her body around slicing towards the ninja. It quickly cut through the skin and muscle tissue on his arm and he cringed in pain.

Once his eyes were shut, she quickly made her move and twisted her body around him as her hands exerted precisions, causing fatal gashes to appear on his body, instantly slicing through muscle tissue and tendons. He gasped in pain as he fell to the ground, immobile.

The other ninja who stumbled forward ran towards her with his blade held high. She turned and sliced straight through the metal, causing his eyes to widen.

She stroked his shoulders before aiming at his legs. He began to drop to the ground, but she pushed her foot against his stomach, and he slid backwards a few feet before falling. He groaned in pain.

After a few seconds, she depleted her jutsu and her chakra vanished. She ran towards the entrance of the alleyway, but then stopped, seeing one of the ninja stand up and walk towards her with two weapons in his hands. She backed up slowly, watching his movements.

"You brat," he muttered. But she took a kunai and pumped chakra into it, slicing through something behind her. She grabbed the thin wire, and her body was jerked upward off the ground. He glanced up at her, confused about what just occurred. He then looked directly above him, but before he even realized it, the ninja who was held up at the balcony fell on top of him. They hit each other's heads and went unconscious.

Sakura landed safely on the balcony and regained her posture before smirking. That was easier than she thought. She jumped down from the balcony and then stopped when feeling another presence ahead of her. Glancing forward, about fifteen feet in front of her, the leader of the shinobi squad was standing there.

"You've become quite a nuisance, girl."

* * *

Tsubasu glanced back as he ran, counting the shinobi behind him; there were eight. He looked forward and began calculating a strategy in his head. He immediately came up with an idea and disappeared into the shadows.

"Where did he go?!" one of them shouted.

"That way!" another said, pointing in another direction. They hurriedly followed him, drastically searching for his chakra signature. They began to run down another road, however, Tsubasu was hiding behind the corner, finishing a hand sign.

"Harigane Denkou no Jutsu," he whispered to himself. Three of the eight ninja were in the front, walking forward. Then, they were suddenly shocked with an electrical charge. The other ninja's eyes' widened. It seemed as though they ran into a wall of electricity. They looked to the sides to see two blades implanted into the ground on each end.

In a flash, Tsubasu was in the air directly above another ninja. He landed on him and he fell to the ground. The other ninjas instantaneously ran for him. He flipped to his side, kicking one of the enemy's wrists, causing him to stagger to his left. Tsubasu then reached out to his side, grabbing another ninja's arm and kicking him hard in the stomach, causing him to hunch over and cough. He flipped him over and slammed him into one of his comrades. Tsubasu then flipped over him, performing an axe kick on top of another ninja's head before his face in contact with the ground.

He then slowly walked over to one of his blades, pulled it out from the ground, and then walked to the other side of the street, pulling out the other one. The eight ninjas began to regain their composure and sit in an offensive battle stance. Tsubasu, who had his back facing his opponents, slid his blades across each other like knives, sharpening them as a spark discharged from the metal. He then turned around and sat in a strong, low stance, ready to prowl. Now the fun would begin.

* * *

"…" Sakura remained silent, examining her opponent from his head to his toes before he interrupted her thoughts.

"The Hokage sent a letter to the Tsuchikage to retrieve you if we spotted you," he began, causing her eyes to come in contact with his. "Are you gonna come with me quietly, or are you gonna make this hard on yourself?" he asked her. He spotted the determination in her eyes.

"Sorry, but I'm not ready to go home just yet," she said.

"I thought you'd say as much," he responded, performing a hand sign. Her battle stance became sturdy.

"Tsuchi Bunshin no Jutsu!" he yelled out as clones of him were formed out of rock. She quickly retrieved her spiked gloves from her pouch and slipped them on with ease. All of the clones immediately ran for her, and in response, she pumped chakra into her newly formed fists.

As one came close to her, she propelled her fist forward. The rock clone immediately shattered.

The other clones sprinted around her. She stuck out her arm and turned on her heel, smashing her fist into another clone and causing it to shatter into pieces. Chakra was pumped into her feet, and she spun horizontally in the air and kicked a clone in the face, destroying it also. She then did a spin wheel kick without chakra, kicking it into the other clone, causing them both to fall to pieces. She turned towards the real enemy, holding another strong stance.

"Ahh, that's right; you're the apprentice of the Hokage," he started off. "Now I see why you're so important," he said, pulling out the blade from its sheath located on his back. "Prepare yourself!" he yelled, running towards her with his sword held out horizontal to his body.

He was then in front of her, and she pulled out and flipped two kunai in her hand. The ninja slid against the ground, slicing his blade horizontally towards her. She gained a firm grip on her kunai and held them out, deflecting his attack.

He twisted the hold of the blade and sliced towards her horizontally; but she blocked it again, creating a 'clang' sound from the metal strongly hitting the other. She took a few steps back from his strong approach, but he took a few steps forward. He kept aiming his blade at her, but it never once touched her flesh. She then planted her feet strongly against the ground as he aimed his blade downwards. She held her kunai in an 'x' formation in front of her face, blocking his attack. They stood there for a few seconds, pushing against each other with as much force as possible without chakra.

"You're pretty good," he said. "But what about this?!" he yelled before he jumped back, sheathing his blade and performing some hand signs.

"Doton: Doruchi!" he shouted as the earth from in front of him emanated from the ground, forming into a large dragon.

Her eyes widened. _Shit! _

It quickly began to race towards her, but she turned around towards the wooden wall in the back of the alleyway and ran towards it. She jumped from one side of the wall to the other, planting her hand on top of it and jumping to the other side. She swiftly landed on the ground and ran towards the street, grabbing the corner of the building and pulling herself behind it and out of the way. The dragon easily broke through the wood and raced forward, hitting the building in front of it.

There was a large explosion, followed by many screams of the civilians. Smoke covered the area as Sakura covered her face with her arms. Once it cleared, she stood up straight against the wall and bit her lip, searching for the enemy's chakra, but found none.

She leaned her head against the wall and slowly peered out over the corner, searching for where he once stood, but all she saw was a shattered wall and some smoke.

She felt a presence beside her and quickly turned on her heel, holding up one of her kunai and blocking the blade that almost stabbed her back. Her eyes widened once seeing her enemy.

_His speed is incredible! _she thought to herself, pushing her enemy out of the deadlock and stepping back a few paces. He began to laugh.

"I almost had you," he said to her with a smirk on his face. Her surprised look formed into a glare. He jumped back, sheathing his blade again and began forming a series of hand signs. She watched him carefully. What jutsu is that?

"Tsuchi no Ōkami!" he yelled before stomping the ground. Part of the earth in front of him began to separate. He raised his hand directly in the air, and the earth, which was shaped into a large square, followed his movements.

Sakura's eyes widened. This was the phenomenal Great Kami of the Earth Jutsu. He sank into a low stance and drove his palm towards her from behind the large rock. Once it shot towards her, Sakura dove to the right.

Barely missing the rock, she landed on her side and rolled on the ground. The ninja separated his arms, cutting out two, large pieces of rock from a building and propelled them forward so that they were vying towards her.

She landed on her feet and hands and jumped up, avoiding them, and they both smashed into a building, creating screams from the residents. She twisted her body and landed on the bottom of a balcony; upside down.

She looked towards him to see boulders lifting from the earth and propelling towards her. She flipped from the bottom of the balcony, grabbed the rail, and flipped herself over it until she landed on top of it.

She quickly covered her face with her arms and jumped through the glass sliding door, shattering it on impact. She landed on the floor and rolled to a stop, looking out where she came from and seeing the balcony break into pieces with a loud explosion. She quickly and painfully took out the shards of glass that penetrated her skin and threw them on the ground before running across the hotel room and opening the door, sprinting down the hall.

* * *

Tsubasu slid his blade against the wall, wiping away the blood. Eight, unconscious ninja were lying on the ground.

After glancing around and feeling no chakra presence making their way towards him, he sheathed his blades and jumped on a rooftop, ready to run east into the forest. However, he stopped in his tracks when he heard a loud explosion coming from Sakura's location. He thought for a moment before speedily making his way towards her.

* * *

Sasuke, Daichi, and Ryuu were directly in front of Iwagakure's east gates when they stopped, hearing a loud explosion towards the northwest. They stopped and looked back, seeing smoke in the air. Sasuke glared, followed by a worried expression from Ryuu.

"That might be Sakura," he said. Suddenly, he felt more weight from Daichi's unconscious body, and he was suddenly holding him. Ryuu gave Sasuke a questionable look, who had his back towards him.

"I'm going after her," he muttered. "Go deep within the forest and hide," he continued before he began running towards the deeper part of the city. He was about to object, but he suddenly vanished. He glowered before readjusting Daichi's weight on top of him and jumping off into the forest.

* * *

The ninja jumped through the broken, sliding glass door and gracefully landed on the floor of the hotel room. Upon looking around and seeing nothing but broken shards of glass with a trace of blood, he smirked and slowly strolled towards the door and into the hallway. He stopped and looked both ways, not seeing any sort of life. He turned right and start making his way through the darkness.

* * *

Sakura quickly opened a random door to her left and shut it behind her before running behind a dresser against the wall and sliding down it. She sat on her heels and listened quietly for footsteps in the hallways. After a few minutes, she heard someone slowly walking through the hallway outside her door. She quietly held her breath as her body cringed subconsciously.

_I have to hurry and come up with a plan, _she thought to herself, listening for any movement outside the room.

The footsteps suddenly stopped, causing a drop of sweat to roll down the side of her forehead. After a few more seconds, a huge boulder came in through the window in the other direction. She frantically punched the floor beneath her to avoid the stone. It completely gave in and she fell downward, landing on her knees.

She ran towards the window, throwing a few shuriken at it, breaking it, and jumping out. She landed on the rooftop and turned towards the room.

"Meisagkure no Jutsu!" she heard him yell from within the building. She waited, looking up towards the shattered building. She stood there, her eyes scanning everywhere around her to find a trace of the man. However, there was absolutely no movement around her.

After a few seconds of waiting, she suddenly felt a stinging sensation on her forearm. She took a step back and glanced down, seeing a gash with blood dripping down it. Another cut was then formed across her torso, causing her to cringe. She hurriedly jumped back and looked in front of her, seeing no one. The confused look that spread across her face caused her enemy to laugh. Her eyes lifted to view the area directly in front of her, but she saw no one there.

"You like my Hidden Camouflage Technique? It took years to perfect, but I finally achieved it!" he said excitedly. Footsteps were heard against the roof, running straight at her. She felt a presence directly ahead of her and held her kunai upward. She felt his blade smash into her kunai when blocking his attack. He laughed again.

"You're such a challenge!" he jumped back and circled around her; unseen by her eyes. Her eyes hastily scanned the area around her. She was struck horizontally in the back and staggered forward. He then swiped her across the cheek, shoulder, and calf; each causing her to stumble from the pain.

_Shimatta, I can't see him! _she cursed to herself.

She pumped chakra into her fist and struck the roof beneath her. As it became to crumble, she jumped from the rooftop onto another. She heard a few footsteps beside her and she spun on her heel, thrusting out her kunai. It came in contact with his blade.

She aimed a few kicks at him, but she missed. She then stopped, skimming the area around her in search of him. Once she heard him, she turned and threw her kunai towards him, but it merely flew in the air.

She gritted her teeth. _Damnit._

"You can't find me, can you?" he rhetorically asked. She could hear the cockiness in his voice. She raced towards where she heard the voice and aimed her fist, but instead, she hit the rock wall. It completely shattered, and she turned, looking for him again. All she heard was a laugh.

_I'm going to run out of chakra before I even find him, _she thought to herself.

She heard him in front of her and she ducked out of the way of his blade and stepped to the side before jumping into the air. However, that was a fatal mistake.

Once she was higher, she felt his foot come in contact with her stomach; cracking a rib. She coughed up blood and shot towards the ground, landing in an alleyway and into some trashcans – knocking them over. The ninja gracefully landed on the rooftop and laughed.

"Gotcha," he sang. He jumped from the rooftop and walked in the alleyway. Her body was covered from the smoke and some trashcans. The only thing that was heard was his soft chuckle and his light footsteps as he made his way closer to her. He stopped a few feet away and waited for her to get up, but she must have been unconscious.

"Well, I thought this battle would have gone for a little while longer," he stated.

He was about to reach for her when suddenly, movement was heard from underneath, and one of the trashcans was suddenly thrown at him.

"Ack!" he yelled as it smashed into his head and caused him to stagger back.

He groaned, rubbing his head. Then his eyes suddenly widened when he glanced at his hands and spotted his hand – wish was covered in dirt – making him visible to the human eye. He then looked in front of him, but the only thing he saw was a flash.

Before he knew it, a fist came in contact with his stomach, and he plummeted backwards, smashing through wall of the closest building, and through the other side of the same building. In mere seconds, the entire place came crumbling down.

* * *

Tsubasu spotted Sasuke, who was on top of a rooftop, drastically looking around him. He landed next to him, causing Sasuke to turn towards him.

"Have you found Sakura?" he asked. Tsubasu shook his head.

"I was just looking for her. Then I heard a huge –"

They both heard another huge explosion, causing them to jerk their neck towards that direction. They saw a huge building crashing down to the ground, causing smoke to fill the air. They looked at each other before racing towards it.

* * *

Sakura stood there, hunched over, trying to catch her breath. Most of her body was covered in blood, dirt, cuts, and bruises. Her body ached and her legs wobbled beneath her. She had successfully won this battle. After a few seconds, she heard someone's voice.

"Sakura!" someone yelled from a distance. She immediately recognized it as Sasuke's voice. She tried to stand completely up, but her broken rib prevented her from doing so. She groaned in pain and wrapped her arm around her torso while placing her hand on her knee for support. She continued to breathe heavily. Damnit. She took a hard fall.

"Sakura!" she heard again. She wanted to so badly reach out to him, but she couldn't find the strength to move forward.

_Sasuke?_ she subconsciously thought. After a few seconds, she used all of her strength to stand up a little straighter and put one foot in front of the other, but when she did, her legs gave out from beneath her and she fell to her knees.

It was then that Tsubasu and Sasuke appeared in the front of the alleyway. She completely fell from her knees and onto her side.

"Shit," Sasuke said, running towards her and kneeling down. He placed his arms beneath her shoulders and the back of her knees, swiftly lifting her weight and standing up straight. He stared at her half-unconscious form in his arms and then turned around while slowly walking back towards Tsubasu.

"Let's go," he said, disappearing immediately. Tsubasu stood there for a moment, thinking to himself.

_Maybe there's something more between them than we thought. _With that, he quickly vanished.


	10. A Day Too Late

"We're here to speak with the Tsuchikage," Neji informed the man at the front desk of the gate.

Koji gave him a skeptic look, scanning him and his comrade up and down. Naruto stood beside Neji, his arms lazily crossed behind his head, clearly bored as his eyes roamed around him.

"I'm sorry, but without proper consult, I can't let you in," the man informed demandingly.

Neji slipped his hand into his pouch and pulled out a scroll before handing it to the ninja adviser.

He grabbed it and opened it up, reading its contents.

"We were sent by the Hokage," Neji replied unemotionally. Koji rolled up the scroll and gave it to him, giving him an apologetic frown.

"I apologize for my rudeness. We had an incident yesterday, and now we need to be on our top guard," he said before opening a drawer and handing him an admission scroll.

Neji was about to ask him what the incident was, but Koji immediately cut him off.

"Here you go. Now, please move along." Neji thought to himself for a moment before grabbing the scroll and walking off. Naruto blinked for a few seconds before following Neji, widening his strides until he was walking parallel next to him.

"What was that about?" he asked, looking at his surroundings. His mind wandered, seeing a ramen stand not too far away. Neji ignored his antics and also looked around. Many buildings were almost destroyed, and the streets were heavily crowded with people. Something definitely happened before they arrived.

* * *

The Tsuchikage looked up from his files when he heard a knock on his office door. He immediately looked to the guard ninja and nodded, signaling that they may enter. He walked towards the door and opened it, letting in Naruto and Neji. Naruto gave the ninja a weird look; he immediately sat up, recognizing their ninja headbands.

"Ah, Konoha ninja. What can I do for you?" he asked, leaning on his desk and observing them. Neji nodded before walking forward, handing him a scroll.

"We were sent by Lady Hokage to retrieve some files," he started off. The Tsuchikage opened the scroll and started reading its contents. After a few seconds, he raised an eyebrow.

"Ryuu; you must mean Yamada Ryuu. Why do you need his files?"

"He is accompanying one of our missing nins," Neji responded. Naruto stopped looking from outside the window and looked towards them. The Tsuchikage stared at him.

"Yamada Ryuu has been MIA for over 5 years."

"Well it seems that we've found him," he responded instantly.

The Tsuchikage stared at him for a few seconds before looking towards one of the ninjas who was standing securely at his side.

"Go look in Iwa's files for Yamada Ryuu, immediately," he demanded.

The ninja nodded and walked out the door. After he walked out, Neji looked back at the Tsuchikage.

"Did you know him personally?" Neji asked. Ōnoki looked down at his desk, thinking back five years ago.

"Yes; Yamada Ryuu was a ninja in Iwagakure. He was one of the most kind-hearted souls I've ever met. He was never too good at taijutsu and ninjutsu, but he excelled in the art of genjutsu; he could put any ranked ninja under an illusion. He was truly remarkable," he continued. Neji noted that statement, making sure to remember it for future events. "Is he still alive?"

"Yes," Neji started off. "He's escorting Konoha's missing nin," Neji finished. Naruto cringed from the thought. Ōnoki nodded. His composure seemed professional, but thoughts about Ryuu were circling through his head.

"Who is the missing nin?" he asked him.

"Haruno Sakura," he said. The Tsuchikage thought for a moment before glaring.

"The ninja that your Hokage wanted us to look for?" he said, thinking a moment to himself. "She was here, last night. Her and her fellow comrades are the reason for the destruction of my village," he responded. Naruto's eyes immediately widened.

"What?!" Naruto shouted, slamming his hands on his desk. Neji grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled him back.

"Naruto! Control yourself!" he spat. Naruto ignored him.

"Which direction did they head in?!" he shouted once more. The Tsuchikage regarded the fierce determination in his eyes.

"They headed east," he stated. Naruto turned to Neji.

"Neji! They aren't far! We have to go after them!" he exclaimed frantically. Neji glared at him.

"Don't you remember what Lady Hokage said?" he claimed. Naruto thought for a moment, and his expression lightened.

"Neji,"

"Don't even start Naruto; we need to follow orders." After thinking for a few moments, his shoulders slouched; with not even a mumble escaping his lips.

"We apologize for the senseless actions of our ex-comrade," Neji started off. "We will send some ninja to help you repair your village." The Tsuchikage nodded in response.

"That would be gladly appreciated," he responded. Ōnoki leaned back in his chair while rubbing his chin, as if he was deep in thought. "If one of those men is Yamada Ryuu, then everything would all add up," he began. "When those ninja first got here, only one of them was wearing a hood; he was trying to hide his identity."

Both Naruto and Neji listened carefully.

"And, while we were trying to subdue them, it seemed as though he knew the attacking formations of the Shagekinin – Ryuu was just beginning to train as a one," Ōnoki finished. Neji nodded in response.

"How many ninjas were escorting Haruno Sakura?" Neji asked, trying to get information on the Uchiha. Naruto, for once, decided to stay quiet beside him. However, once he realized why Neji was asking this question, he listened intently to the Tsuchikage's response.

"There were four other men with her," he began as he took out the letter that the Hokage sent him, reading over its contents. "However, in this letter from your Hokage, it says that there are only three escorting her. Who is the other male?" Ōnoki asked. Neji looked over at Naruto, and they both nodded to each other. Naruto looked back at the Tsuchikage with a confused look on his face.

"He's on our team," he began. "He went after Sakura-chan to bring her back." Ōnoki returned the confused look.

"By the looks of it, he isn't doing his job very well," he started off. "I wonder why he decided to join them?" he asked. Neji responded.

"Well, I suppose we'll have to find that out."

* * *

The first thing that came to Sakura's mind was the strong pain that ran through her system. This caused a subconscious moan to escape her lips as her muscles tightened. Even though her eyes felt completely glued together, she opened them, immediately coming in contact with the white, tainted ceiling above her head.

She casted her eyes to the left of her; there was a small nightstand with a lamp sitting on top of it and a basket with various amounts of fruit in them. To the right of her, was a larger dresser. It had a darker shade of brown than the rest of the furniture, which seemed to be a light, oak color. The room itself seemed to be claimed by an older generation – the walls were scratched, the loose articles of clothing that hung slightly out of the drawers seemed torn, and the walls were a simple peach color. The door, which was located slightly to the left of the room, was slightly cracked open. She could hear the low whispers coming from the other room. Once it grabbed her curiosity, she weakly swung her legs onto the ledge of the bed and pulled herself up.

"Once she's regained her energy, we can move on to another village," Tsubasu replied. "For now, we'll just have to stay here." He looked over to Ryuu. "Have you detected any movement close to our location?" Ryuu shook his head.

"No," he replied. "My genjutsu is still strongly intact around our area." Tsubasu nodded, and in response said, "Good."

Daichi, who was sprawled lazily on the couch, stretched his legs off of the arm rest.

"She better wake up soon," he said almost unclearly as a yawn escaped his lips. "My shoulder hurts like a bitch." Ryuu almost gave him a glare.

"She's in worse shape than you," he replied with a huff. "Your shoulder is just fine." Daichi rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, whatever."

Sasuke, who was standing in front of the windows and glimpsing out into the forest, suddenly spoke.

"Where are we heading to next?" The three other men looked towards him suddenly. Tsubasu decided to reply to his question.

"Most likely directly east of our current location. We should avoid any major villages; the Hokage probably sent multiple letters to each of Konoha's allies," he concluded, causing Sasuke to nod in response.

"A friend of mine lives around Takigakure. He would probably let us stay with him while we search for information in the small village not too far from his cottage," Sasuke retorted. Before Tsubasu could reply, there was a loud creaking sound coming from the other side of the room.

Sakura came through the door, slouched in pain are she softly gripped her side. Her hair was frizzy and unbrushed, her skin a bit paler than usual, with bags swollen under her eyes. It was obvious that her ribs had received a beating. Sasuke subconsciously frowned at her weak form. He had not seen her look so vulnerable since they were genin.

"Is everyone okay?" she asked slowly. Daichi sat up suddenly and pointed to his injured shoulder that was wrapped in gauze.

"No!" he pointed out dramatically; clearly oblivious to the pain she was going through. Ryuu instantly slammed his fist against the top of his head, causing Daichi to flinch.

"Baka!" Ryuu spat. Sakura walked over to Daichi and sat softly on the couch, inspecting his injury from a distance.

"I can take care of it," she replied before she lifted his arm above his head and unwrapped the gauze around his form. Ryuu stepped forward.

"Sakura, you're hurt and in no condition to be healing anyone other than yourself," he exclaimed. Sakura glanced at him with a determined look in her eyes.

"I'm fine Ryuu. Besides, Daichi lost a lot more blood than I did," she said as she instantly returned her gaze onto her work. "What happened?" she inquired. Ryuu sat down at the chair next to her.

"An arrow when straight through his shoulder," Ryuu replied. She nodded in response as she became very consumed into healing his injury. It seemed the arrow when straight through the articular cartilage and the top of the scapula. After she healed the collagen, she would have to move onto the hypodermis layer of the skin.

She placed her hand over his shoulder as the chakra seeped through the hole and into the innermost layer of his body. He cringed in pain at her directness, but he then began to relax at the warm feeling of her chakra.

"How many days do you need to rest to recuperate?" Tsubasu questioned. After a minute of thinking, Sakura replied.

"We can leave today. I don't want to take any chances of being caught. Ryuu can only hold the genjutsu for so long," she replied. Ryuu frowned.

"Sakura, you're exhausted. How on earth do you think you're going to walk?" he almost demanded. Sakura frowned at him.

"Don't worry; I'll be fine. Just give me a few hours to heal and I'll be ready to go," Sakura said before looking at Daichi's wound once more, putting her full concentration into healing him. Realizing that he could not change her mind, Ryuu sighed in defeat. She was just so damn stubborn sometimes.

* * *

After hours of healing among the group, they packed their belongings and huddled together in the living room of the cottage.

"Is everyone ready?" Tsubasu asked. Everyone replied with a nod. Tsubasu opened the door, with Daichi and Ryuu following along with him.

Sasuke was about to exit when he felt a hand grasp his forearm. He looked behind him to see Sakura staring into his eyes, a sense of regret and thankfulness lingering within them.

"I just wanted to say thank you for helping me on this mission. It really means a lot to me," she exclaimed, as if she was unsure of what to say. A smirk rose to his face, completely changing the mood in the atmosphere.

"Well, I figured you wouldn't be able to finish this mission without me anyways. So, I decided to continue tagging along," Sasuke exclaimed, causing Sakura glare at him.

"Uhm, excuse me, but I could handle this mission without your help," Sakura almost demanded. Sasuke's smirk widened.

"Hn," he said before walking out as his hands slide slyly into his pockets, leaving Sakura with a surprised expression covering her face. After a few seconds, she glared at his retreating back.

"I swear, that Uchiha is impossible," she said before following the rest of her team and shutting the cottage door behind her.


	11. Eye of the Storm

Sakura reviewed the plan within her mind, computing every aspect over and over again. If her calculations were correct, they were now located somewhere between Iwagakure and Takigakure, heading East. By nightfall, if everything went smoothly, they would be right on the border of this country and the next.

Sakura crinkled the map in her hands, gazing upward as the bottom of her feet continued coming in contact with the bark. She glanced at her teammates in front of her, seeing Ryuu directly in front of her, Tsubasu leading the front, and Daichi was in the middle of them.

Her head lifted upwards towards the sky, the branches rushing past her and hindering her vision. They had been traveling for a few hours now – the sun had passed directly above them hours ago. It was about four o'clock, she thought. Soon they should probably stop to take a break. She placed her map back in her pouch and glanced back at the figure behind her.

The Uchiha was following her from behind, his stares producing a whole in her back. She glanced back forward, ignoring the gaze. She was oddly getting use to his constant stares. Those obsidian eyes would stare at her, her own eyes being captivated by never ending sea of black, the fine, horizontally line of his lips curling upward to form a beautiful smirk, his darkened locks blowing as the wind caressed his pale skin.

She sighed quietly to herself, closed her eyes, and thought quietly to herself before she reopened her eyes and scanned the area. An uneasy feeling began to rush over her, nausea striking the pit of her stomach. She could not exactly pinpoint it, but something felt off. Her strides lengthened, landing on the same tree branch as Ryuu did and looking ahead as if it her attention was not towards him.

"Something feels off," she whispered lowly so only he could hear. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye before looking around, continuing to jump from tree to tree. He looked back at her and their eyes came in contact again. She slowed back down, so if anyone wasn't around, they wouldn't get suspicious. But, as she did, she landed on the next tree branch and suddenly looked down, seeing an explosion tag underneath her that started to go off. Her eyes widened.

"Shit!" she yelled loudly, causing everyone to look at her. Sasuke noticed this and grabbed her arm, yanking her back with a lot of force, and at the same time, everyone scattered. Within seconds, the tag exploded.

* * *

"Damn it! They separated us!" Tsubasu yelled from behind a tree as the smoke began covering the entire area. "We need to regroup!" he yelled to Ryuu and Daichi. They nodded in response. But, right as they were about to run towards them, a group of rogue ninja surrounded them.

"Tch," Daichi said in response as his wrist blades emitted through his sleeves. Tsubasu unsheathed his blades, scanning the area as Ryuu pulled out two kunai and help them in a defensive position.

"Be ready!" Tsubasu yelled. The rogue ninja immediately attacked.

* * *

As the explosion ended, Sakura slowly let her arms drop. She felt someone's body heat around her and she glanced back, seeing the position she was in. Sasuke was sitting against a tree with Sakura leaning back against him, in between his legs, with his arms around her body in a protective position. He was scanning her body up and down for any injuries.

Heat rose to her face and she knocked his arms from around her, quickly shielding the blush from her face.

"I can take care of myself," she said, standing up. Sasuke was about to respond to her when all of a sudden a several kunai were thrown from a tree to the right of them. Sasuke and Sakura immediately responded, pulling out their weapons. Sasuke deflected the kunai with his blade, and Sakura blocked them with her own kunai. Rain ninja instantly jumped from the trees all around them. Sakura bit her lip.

_Kuso, _she thought to herself as she pumped chakra into her feet, pushing off the branch with tremendous force.

She twisted the hold of her kunai in her hand until she had the kunai's sharp edge facing the direction she was jumping towards. She soared towards her target, who tried to dodge the attack, but it was too late. She slammed her body and her kunai into the ninja, stabbing him in the heart. She landed against the tree, pulling the kunai out of the corpse before it fell to the ground. She felt a presence directly behind her and pushed off of the tree, flipping in the air and kicking the ninja in the skull. She heard a successful 'crack,' before the ninja slammed into the ground. She grabbed a tree's branch and swung herself around it until she landed on top of it in a crouch position.

* * *

Sasuke felt a presence behind him and spun his body around, slicing the ninja diagonally across his chest and kicking him in the gut, sending him flying in the other direction and directly into a tree. Sasuke sent an electric discharge through his whole body and into his blade. He quickly scanned to his right, seeing a ninja heading towards him. He hurled his blade at him, which went through his chest, and stuck into the tree behind him; halting his movements. Sasuke detected eight shinobi jumping towards him from behind and he pulled out a bunch of senbon, pumping an electric charge into them, and throwing them at his enemies.

"Chidori Senbon!" he yelled. The senbon struck the ninja, and they fell down to the ground.

* * *

Sakura jumped off the tree, using the momentum to spin her body and kick her enemy in the side of the face. He went flying to the ground. She landed gracefully and identified someone flying at her from behind. She quickly turned around and shielded her face with her arms. The shinobi's foot came in contact with her arms, and she lost her footing, falling towards the ground. She hit the ground with a 'thud' and skidded back before twisting her body fully and sliding across the ground on her knees and hands to slow her body down. All of the shinobi saw this chance as an opportunity and raced towards her.

* * *

Sasuke watched his enemies closely until they suddenly stopped surrounding him, instantly racing in the other direction. Sasuke looked back to where they were headed and noticed Sakura falling. She hit the ground, but quickly regained her composure and slid against the ground, holding herself up. Simultaneously, all of the shinobi raced towards her, seeing her moment of weakness. He gritted his teeth.

_Shit._

He ran to his blade, which was imbedded into a corpse, pulled it out, and ran towards her.

One of them raced towards her first with his long blade held high. She pulled out two kunai, forming them above her head in an 'x' position. The blade came down on her kunai and she protected herself from harm's way. She noticed another shinobi coming at her from behind his comrade.

She quickly twisted her kunai and caused the ninja she was in a deadlock with to stagger to his left, breaking the hold she had with him. She put her left foot forward, putting all of her weight onto it, and spun on her heel, spinning her body around while pumping chakra into her right foot until it came in contact with the approaching shinobi's head. He flew off in the direction, flying into a tree and knocking it completely over.

A ninja appeared behind Sakura and was about to smash his kunai into her head when Sasuke appeared to his side, sliding against the dirt and knocking his elbow in his face, causing him to fly back and hit the ground. Sakura backed up from the momentum of her kick and accidentally bumped into someone behind her. Her eyes widened and she quickly looked back, seeing that she had bumped into Sasuke. Their backs were against each other, and they were surrounded by ninja. She shook off the feeling of surprise and put her focus fully on the ninja in front of her.

"Do you remember attack number eight with Naruto and me?" Sasuke suddenly asked her, catching Sakura off guard. She looked at him from the corner of her eye before thinking to herself for a moment. She remembered that attack from many years ago that Naruto and Sasuke perfected together.

"Yeah, I think so. Why?" she asked him, looking back at the shinobi in front of her.

"Take Naruto's position in the combination and do it," he said back. She thought for a moment before complying and nodding, making a hand sign.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" she whispered as a group of five clones appeared around her and Sasuke.

One of the clones grabbed another clone by the shirt, rotating both of their bodies, and threw her towards one of the enemies. The ninja and the clone simultaneously pulled out their weapons before their blades collided. As the other clones rushed towards their enemies, Sasuke and Sakura quickly turned towards each other. Sakura intertwined her fingers together with her palms facing up as Sasuke planted his foot on top of them. Pumping chakra into her arms and hands, she used her strength to throw Sasuke high in the air. Sasuke flipped in the air until his body was turning vertically while doing some hand signs.

_Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu! _

Fire balls shot down at the rogue ninja. They quickly pushed off the ground and jumped back away from the furious fire. The clones dispersed from the fire. While the ninja were in the air from jumping back, numerous shuriken and kunai emitted from the fire, heading in their direction.

The weapons whizzed right past them. It was then they realized a wire was connected to the weapons. The wire wrapped around their bodies and the tree behind them, causing them to smack into the tree and flinch in response. They all looked back towards the fire and their eyes widened when they realized the fire was racing up the wire. Within seconds, their bodies were consumed by the flames, their screams echoing through the forest.

Sasuke landed on the ground, back to back with Sakura. Sakura squinted her eyes, trying to gaze through the fire, which quickly began to die down. She looked around, seeing the burnt, dead bodies of her enemies.

"Did you get them all?" Sakura asked. Sasuke's composure never faltered.

"One dodged," he replied cooly with his Sharingan blazing, looking around for his enemy. He suddenly felt a cool sensation on his cheek, catching his attention. He then felt a few more drops, causing him to look up. Dark clouds had been suddenly formed in the sky. Sakura, who also felt a difference in the atmosphere, looked up as well.

"The skies were clear just a few minutes ago," she proclaimed. Sasuke nodded in response.

"Aa," he responded. It started to drizzle, and the rain become heavier. The fire started to distinguish from the rain.

"Do you like it?"

Sasuke and Sakura pulled out their weapons and turned at the same time towards the source of the voice. A man emitted from the shadows of the trees and stepped forward into the open battlefield. His dark, brown hair acted almost as a camouflage from the darkness of the forest, his purple eyes contrasting greatly with his features and the scenery around him. A smirk covered his pale face. Sakura looked at the headband across his forehead, recalling in her head the slash through the Hidden Rain symbol.

"Amegakure," she whispered to Sasuke, causing him to nod. The ninja's smirk widened in response.

"This is my Jinkouu no Jutsu technique. I can cause it to rain wherever I please, thus, giving me the upper hand in battle," he said while performing a few hand signs.

The rain seemed to fall down even harder.

"Ame Ame Tama!"

Sasuke and Sakura looked up towards the clouds, and the rain drops seem to somewhat stop in the air and begin to condense. Within the next second, they came crashing down like bullets. The duo pushed off the ground, separating and dodging the upcoming rain bullets that headed straight them. Sakura raised her kunai and blocked some of the rain, which knocked her back.

_They're harder than boulders. _

Sasuke jumped back against the trunk of a tree and pumped chakra into his blade.

_Chidori Nagashi!_ he thought as a discharged, electric current surrounded his body and his blade. He pushed off the trunk of the tree and dashed straight towards the rogue ninja; the rain that came in contact with him dispersed. The ninja jumped towards his right out of the way before Sasuke came in contact to where he was standing moments ago. The tree that he was standing in front of was carelessly cut in half by Sasuke's sharp blade. The ninja turned his body in the air towards the Uchiha and quickly performed a long line of hand signs.

"Kyuutai no Ame!" he shouted as he faced his palms towards the Uchiha. Rain droplets started to gather towards his palms. The rain condensed into a large orb, and then immediately shot out towards the Uchiha. Sasuke quickly flipped his body away from the designated line of fire and dodged the exploding impact. The rogue ninja continued this attack and Sasuke continued to quickly escape his assaults.

Sakura decided to take this as an opportunity to slip on her spiked, fingerless gloves and swiftly jump towards her opponent. The ninja saw her through his peripheral vision and turned one of his hands; gathering the needed chakra into his palm to execute his jutsu. The chakra filled orb shot out towards her.

She raised her kunai in defense, but the attack was too strong. It exploded on impact and sent her spiraling through the trees, knocking them over and covering the area in smoke. Sasuke glared in response.

The ninja's attention was stolen and he took this opportunity to perform a few hand signs.

"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!" A large fire ball started to form from his mouth and he projected it straight towards the ninja. The ninja aimed his palms at the large fireball that was heading straight at him and shot out the chakra filled orb towards it. Sasuke's eyes widened.

_Shit!_

* * *

"Nehan Shoja no Jutsu!" Ryuu shouted out as the large group of ninjas in front of him suddenly fell unconscious. He looked back at Daichi and Tsubasu, who were battling against a few others. "How are you guys holding up?" Tsubasu stabbed one of his victims in the torso and then withdrew his blade as ninja fell to the ground in pain.

"They're tough; I wouldn't expect any less from rogue ninja from the Hidden Rain," Tsubasu stated before turning around and deflecting a few frozen senbon. Daichi jumped, kicked the wrist of his attacker, knocked the weapon out of his hand, and slashed him diagonally across his torso. He then glanced at his comrades.

"Where did Sakura and Sasuke go?" he shouted towards them before kicking a ninja in the face with the heel of his foot. Ryuu looked off in another direction.

"I think they went –"

He was suddenly cut off when a large eruption was heard not too far from their location. Everyone looked up towards the sky to see an odd looking color of chakra filling the sky. Tsubasu changed his two blades into a reverse grip position, grasping the blades tightly.

"Hurry and finish off the remaining ninja, we need to go help them," he commanded. The two nodded as they continued to defeat rogue ninja.

* * *

Sakura slowly let her arms fall, observing the area in front of her. It was still continuing to rain heavily upon the area. Everything looked to be completely abolished by the explosion that just occurred. It seemed as though the conflict of the very two different jutsus seemed to cause a negative reaction, which in turn caused the blast of chakra.

After standing up, she scanned the region once more, looking for her missing comrade. Her breath caught in her throat.

_Sasuke. _

She began frantically searching for him.

"Sasuke?" she shouted. "Sasuke!" she yelled louder as she stepped over a tree that had fallen to the ground.

She heard a low grunting noise. She scanned the area around her for the location of the voice. After a few seconds, she saw his arm from underneath a very large tree.

"Sasuke! Hold on!" She ran over to him quickly, removing the large object off of him and searching his body for any major injuries. "Are you all right?" she asked as she took his arm, helping him sit up. He nodded, followed by a grunt in pain.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said, looking into her eyes.

For some odd reason, they found themselves stuck in a deadlock with their eyes, unable to remove the gaze they held with each other. Sakura was about to say something, but she was caught off by another voice.

"You think you can get rid of me that easily?!" the Rain ninja yelled. Sakura quickly stood up, calculating the options she had. She was clearly at a disadvantage. It was currently raining, Sasuke was wounded, and she was still injured from her last battle. And if she didn't end this battle quickly, she was going to be out of chakra. Where were her teammates when she needed them?

After a long line of handsigns, the Rain nin shouted out his next technique.

"Kadou Boufuu no Jutsu!"

The storm clouds from the sky suddenly began to circle the area at a high speed. Sakura's eyes widened at the sudden change in the atmosphere before bending down towards Sasuke.

"We have to go; now," she said hastily as she began to help him up. The adversary laughed at her antics.

"But don't you get it. You can't leave as long as my jutsu is still present," he almost cackled. Sakura helped Sasuke fully stand up with his arm slung around her shoulder. She gritted her teeth. Now what?

"Sakura," Sasuke started off, causing her to glance up at him. "He's getting cocky; grab his attention and I'll strike when he least expects it," he said just below a whisper. She nodded in response and put him down before stepping forward a few steps and looking at her opponent with indomitable eyes.

"You can't win this," she replied. His cackle echoed throughout the area.

"Oh naïve you are," he began as he lifted his arms in the air. "Let me show you who will lose this battle!"

He threw his arms in a downward motion. In mere seconds, the droplets of water became as sharp as needles and poured down straight for her. She quickly sprinted off in the other direction, attempting to evade his attack.

* * *

Tsubasu, Ryuu, and Daichi sprinted through the trees, heading straight towards the occurrence of the explosion. However, before they could reach the area, Daichi suddenly slammed into something and fell back onto the hard dirt.

Tsubasu scanned the area in front of them and scoffed.

"Shit, there's a chakra field covering the area," he stated to Ryuu as he placed his hand on the field, causing a sudden spark to enflame his skin. He shook off his hand slightly to rid the pain. "And a strong one at that."

"Nehh," Daichi gargled as he sat up, rubbing his head. Ryuu frowned.

"So how are we going to get in?" he asked Tsubasu. After a second of thinking, he replied.

"We're not."

* * *

Sakura continued to try to dodge his assaults. However, over longer periods of time, it seemed to become harder and harder to avoid. Periodically, more and more needles would scratch her skin, causing a fresh wound to appear on her already ragged body. She continued to hide behind trees to try to avoid the attacks, but it seemed as though the needles were coming from every direction.

She then suddenly looked over to where Sasuke once lay, seeing that he was missing. He needs to do this quick, or she's really going to be in trouble! She doesn't know how much longer she can keep this going.

At that moment, the Rain enemy suddenly appeared at her side, punching her square in the jaw and knocking her down on the ground. She rolled to a stop, cradling her new injury. He was suddenly above her as he stomped his foot in her stomach, causing her to cringe in pain. The ninja laughed menacingly.

"You need to learn to pay attention to your surroundings, girl," he wickedly smiled at her. Her glare deepened, biting her lip as his foot pushed farther down on her bruised abdominal. She stared behind him, suddenly, her frown transforming into a smirk.

"I was just about to tell you the same thing," she stated. He blinked in confusion and then remembered her teammate. It was then that he felt a lingering chakra located behind him – but it was too late. In mere seconds, his blade was pierced through his stomach.

* * *

"This is taking forever! How come Sakura always gets most of the action?" he questioned melodramatically. Tsubasu rolled his eyes at his statement.

"Because if you were to get the difficult enemies, you would just get your ass kicked," he remarked. Daichi glared at him.

"You bas –"

"Guys! Look!" Ryuu exclaimed, cutting Daichi off. Both of them looked over to see the chakra field suddenly dispersing.

They ran through the trees to see Sakura treating Sasuke's injury.

"Are you guys okay?" Tsubasu questioned, causing the two to look up. Sakura frowned.

"Barely," Sakura remarked as she looked at Sasuke, referring to the delay in his final attack. Sasuke shrugged.

"I knew what I was doing," he replied, causing her to roll her eyes. "Mhm," was all she remarked. After a few seconds, they both stood.

"ANBU are going to be led to this location. We better get out of here," Tsubasu exclaimed. Sakura nodded in response.

"All right, let's go." In mere seconds, they all vanished from the region.


	12. Face to Face

"Are you sure it's okay for us to just stay here?" Sakura inquired as Sasuke knocked on the front door of a small cottage. Sasuke shrugged.

"I've saved his ass more times than I can count. He owes me anyway," Sasuke stated.

"Go way! I'm busy!" they heard a voice shout. Some of the teammates passed each other a look. Sasuke sighed in annoyance before banging harder on the door with his fist.

"Get your ass out here before I stick that huge blade up it," he shouted.

After a few seconds of silence, the door quickly opened, revealing a shark looking man who had a huge smile plastered onto his face.

"Sasuke!" Suigetsu said with a smile before embracing him in a tight hug, causing Sasuke to glare at him.

"Get off," he demanded while attempting to push him off. Once he was pried off of him, Suigetsu pouted.

"You're still so grumpy!" he exclaimed. Sasuke rolled his eyes again.

"We need to stay here for a few days," Sasuke exclaimed while motioning to his companions. Suigetsu glanced over at them before placing his eyes onto Sakura. His eyes glistened like stars as he grabbed Sakura's hand and kissed the top of it.

"You can stay as long as you like," he said seductively. "My name is Hōzuki Suigetsu, my beautiful flower." Sakura gave him a disgusted look as Daichi and Ryuu fumed. Sasuke hit Suigetsu on the top of his head with his fist. "Ow!" he shouted, rubbing his head.

"Don't touch her," he demanded. Suigetsu looked at him, back to the girl, and back to Sasuke.

"Oh, I see," he exclaimed while crossing his arms in a pouting manor. "This must be your girlfriend; good for you Sasuke! I was starting to think you were gay." Sasuke and Sakura's eyes widened.

"We're not together!" they shouted. Suigetsu gave them a questionable look before grabbing Sakura's hand again.

"Then may I –"

"Just let us in," he demanded harshly. Suigetsu sighed, letting go of Sakura's hand and opening the door wider so that they could step through.

"Geez, still grumpy and bossy I see," he proclaimed. The five ninja stepped through the door, taking in the scenery of his home.

The first thing that everyone saw was the large stain on the far end of the wall. In front of it, was an old, beaten up couch that was missing a cushion. In place of the missing cushion was a pillow, which had coffee stains over the tainted fabric. Beside the couch was a chair that was missing a leg, so it was tilting slightly to the left. In the next room was a small, open kitchen that was filled with leftover food. There was a small hallway at the end of the other side of the house, leading to a single bedroom. Scattered all over the floor were dirty clothes, and even some old whiskey bottles. The whole place reeked of alcohol and outdated food. It was a pigsty.

Everyone's noses scrunched in disgust.

"This place is," everyone glanced at Daichi. "Awesome!" he shouted while running over to the couch before hoping onto it, landing on his back.

Well, except one.

"I know, right?!" Suigetsu exclaimed. Everyone else sweatdropped. Of course they would get along.

"You've gotta be kidding me," Sakura whispered to Sasuke. He shrugged in response.

"You guys hungry? I just made some –"

"No!" they shouted at once before coughing to "clear their throats."

"We uhh, actually have to go look around the village for a bit," Tsubasu said, not wanting to know what disgusting things lingered in his refrigerator. Daichi pouted.

"What?! I'm starving!" he said, complaining once again.

"Then stay here, idiot," Tsubasu exclaimed. "The rest of us will go." Daichi's face brightened.

"Sweet!" he said before running to the kitchen. Suigetsu shrugged.

"Suit yourself." Sakura, Sasuke, Ryuu, and Tsubasu made their way out of the cottage, shutting the door behind them.

"This potato salad is amazing!" they heard Daichi scream.

"I know, right? Even the flies like it," Suigetsu exclaimed. Sakura shivered in disgust.

"That's revolting," Sakura said simply. Sasuke sighed. He's never going to change.

"All right, I think we can cover more ground if we split up," Tsubasu said, looking at his three comrades. "There are two villages, so if we split up into two groups, we can cover more land in more time."

"Do we really wantto rush? I'm not looking forward to staying here tonight," she said, referring to the nauseating place behind her. Tsubasu shrugged.

"No, but we also don't want to take a chance being caught either," he replied. Sakura nodded.

"I'll see you guys later," she said to Ryuu and Tsubasu as she began to walk away. Sasuke nodded to them before turning around to follow her. Ryuu was about to object and suggest an alternative, but he gave up instead.

"Just give up," Tsubasu remarked while sliding his hands in his pockets, walking in the other direction. Ryuu turned around before walking behind him, a frown deepening.

* * *

"Suigetsu is interesting," Sakura remarked, putting emphasis on the adjective. Sasuke sighed just thinking about it.

"My ex-whole team was interesting," he exclaimed, referring back to Team Hebi. She frowned at the mention of his old team, an awkward silence filling the air. Their eyes traveled away from each other, avoiding eye contact. Sakura's arm slowly rose up to her other one, rubbing it softly.

"Did you ever miss us?" she said suddenly. Sasuke looked at her, and Sakura looked back at him in surprise, stunned by her sudden outburst. She looked in the other direction, hiding the small blush that creeped onto her face. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to –"

"All the time," he said, cutting her off. She looked back up at him in surprise.

"You did?" She asked in surprise.

"Yeah," he said before looking away. She tried to observe his face once more as another short silence filled the air.

After thinking to herself for a moment, she finally decided to ask him another question.

"Then why didn't you come back?" she asked. His eyes casted downward and his fists clenched subconsciously in his pockets.

"I couldn't," he said simply. Sakura gave him a questioned look.

"Of course you could have. We always had our door open for you," she exclaimed.

"It wasn't you," he started to say as he shut his eyes, as if a horrible memory was suddenly casted through his mind. "It was Itachi. Well, at least I thought it was," he trailed off as his mind was consumed by numerous thoughts.

"Is that why you returned to Konoha? Because you defeated him?" she inquired. He slowly shook his head.

"After defeating him, I wasn't planning to return home at all," he started. "I was actually planning to destroy it."

Sakura stopped in her tracks.

"W-What?" she shuttered, surprise and fear coursing through her. Sasuke stopped also as his head hung down low in regret.

"After his death, I learned something about him that I never knew before," he started.

Sakura kept quiet, waiting for him to continue.

"Itachi led me to believe that he was the villain behind everything; that I needed to get revenge on him for killing our clan. But that wasn't the case at all." Sakura looked deep within his eyes as a look of sadness began to consume his face.

"Back when we were younger, the Uchiha clan was planning a coup d'état against Konoha. Itachi was placed in a horrible position: to take the side of Konoha, or his own family. In the end, he chose Konoha.

"So, he became a spy and watched the Uchiha clan carefully. They were getting too powerful. So, he was ordered to eliminate his entire clan. However, there was something that he couldn't do: he couldn't kill his younger brother," he stated. Sakura looked at him with remorse as she began putting the pieces together.

"So, instead of killing me, he humiliated me – told me to hate everything and become stronger so that one day he could face me in battle. My hatred for his wrongdoing became so strong that I was devoured by revenge. And, when I became strong enough, I fought him and won.

"The people who ordered to put Itachi in this horrible position; the people who ruined his life were the Counselors," he stated as his fingers began to curl. "My hatred for Konoha began to grow. I was so angry that I wanted to eliminate the Counselors and everyone else in the village. Itachi didn't deserve the life that was handed to him." Sakura's eyes began to soften. "But, when I was about to start planning my revenge on the village, Itachi came to me in a dream."

"_Itachi?" Sasuke questioned, seeing his brother standing before him. This didn't make sense – he was dead. How was he in front of him looking healthy and alive? _

"_Why are you doing this?" Itachi immediately questioned him. This threw him off. _

"_What are you talking about?" Sasuke replied. Itachi's emotionless face never faltered. _

"_Why are you planning to destroy the village?" he asked him directly. Sasuke immediately began to be consumed with hatred. His fists tightened together. _

"_Revenge! The people need to repay for what they've done –" _

"_Just like your revenge on me?" he questioned, cutting him off from finishing his statement. After a few seconds, Sasuke's eyes were filled with sadness and regret. _

"_Itachi,"_

"_Don't you see, Sasuke? By killing our clan, by leaving the village to join the Akatsuki, by letting you live," Itachi trailed off, consumed in this thoughts before he continued. "I was protecting you and the village." _

"_I get that part, I just don't understand why –" _

"_No, you don't get it, Sasuke," he demanded harshly. "I did this to protect our home, and now you want to go destroy it?" he questioned, staying silent for a minute. Sasuke's eyes began to wander downward. "If you destroy Konoha, then my death will be nothing but a waste." Sasuke's eyes rose once again. _

"_But the Counselors –"_

"_I did what needed to be done!" he shouted. Sasuke stayed silent. Itachi eyes softened before walking up to him. He placed his hands firmly on his shoulders and looked into his eyes. "I planned my death so that you could return home as a hero," he exclaimed. Sasuke's eyes became to fill with tears. _

"_But this isn't fair - you didn't deserve this!" he shouted. Itachi's face was as passive as ever. _

"_You need to return to Konoha, return to your friends, and revive our clan," he started off. Sasuke's eyes began to soften again. "I want you to make the Uchiha clan better than it once was; not a disgrace to the village." _

"_But, brother," Sasuke started off as Itachi let go of his shoulders and started to turn around. _

"_Start your life over, and be with the ones who care about you," he finished as he began walking off, slowly disappearing as a mist began to cover the entire area. Sasuke reached out to him. _

"_Wait! Itachi!" he shouted as he began to run to him. However, before he could find him, he disappeared like a ghost into the night. _

"And that's when I returned to Konoha," Sasuke finished. Sakura cut off her stare onto his face and looked at the ground as they continued to walk.

"I'm so sorry. I had no idea," she stated. He sighed, as if it would help him lift the burden off of his shoulders.

"It's the past and I can't change it," he said.

After a moment, they began walking again as they both began consumed in their own thoughts. Itachi wanted him to return home, and that's what he did. However, this wasn't about him anymore. It was about the girl next to him, whom he still hadn't received answers from. He glanced over to her face. He could tell she was also contemplating.

"So, why is this mission so important to you?" he asked her. She wasn't looking at him, but he could tell that she was immediately struck by sadness, making the area around her feel very tense.

"Orochimaru," she started off; casting her eyes downward. "He took everything away from me," she said simply, but with so much emotion. Sasuke ran through the memory in his mind of Orochimaru dying by his feet.

"Sakura, are you sure it was Orochimaru?" he asked more sternly, which caused a negative reaction from Sakura. Without warning, anger began to devour her as memories began flooding her mind.

"Of course I'm sure! It was really him!" she shouted in anger. He grabbed her shoulders, turning her fully around to look at him. Their eyes met.

"Sakura, it's not possible. He was sealed away in a genjutsu by the Sword of Totsuka for all of eternity," he replied. Sakura's eyes began to slowly fill with tears. He could never comprehend how much hell she's been through.

"You wouldn't understand," she exclaimed as she gritted her teeth together. Sasuke pondered what she said for a moment before glaring at her.

"I wouldn't understand?" he began, letting go of her shoulders. "My entire clan, who was actually a disgrace to my village, was killed because my brother was forced to." His anger began to rise. "And I ended up killing the only person in my family who truly loved me! And you're telling me that I wouldn't understand the pain you're going through?!" She looked up to him, glaring back in response to his yelling.

"No, Sasuke,you wouldn't understand! You have noidea what I've been through, so don't act like you do!" she shouted back as her whole body began to tense in anger.

"Then tell me, Sakura! What have you been through?!" he barked back.

Sakura then reached up to her shoulder and grabbed the hoodie. However, before she pulled it away from her shoulder, she froze, envisioning her actions. She tightened her fist around her clothing before glancing in the other direction, letting her hand fall slowly by her side.

"I don't have to prove anything to you," she said before running off in the direction. He stared at her retreating back, making no move to stop her.

* * *

"Come in," Tsunade replied. Neji and Naruto walked in, nodding to Tsunade and the other two in the room.

"We achieved what you were looking for, Hokage-sama," Neji stated, walking forward to hand her the scroll. She took it, opening up its contents and reading them aloud.

"Yamada Ryuu: MIA five years ago while on a mission with his team," Tsunade read. Her eyebrows creased, revealing some sort of trouble that was washing over her. "These three boys all went missing around the same time and around the same age. This can't be a coincidence," she said again, staring at the pictures of the boys.

A picture of her young apprentice also rang through her mind.

"Sakura went missing about three years ago from her own home."

"They were all taken by the same captor," Shikamaru stated, causing everyone to look at him. Naruto's eyes widened.

"That's why they were all together," Naruto exclaimed, as if some sort of hope was washing through him.

"But why not return home once they got away?" Ino asked, not putting things quite together.

"Revenge," Tsunade stated, glaring down at the desk. Neji nodded, as if thinking the same thing. Naruto's eyes saddened once more, picturing a smiling, innocent Sakura within his mind.

"But, the question is, who was it that captured them? And why?" Shikamaru said while closing his eyes, trying to find answers. The room stayed quiet for a few moments before Tsunade sighed heavily to herself.

"I'm not sure," Tsunade begin. She scanned them, as if it would help her find more answers. "Is there anything else I need to know?" she asked. Neji nodded before stepping forward.

"Sakura and her group were in Iwagakure a day before we were," Neji started off, handing Tsunade a scroll. She took it, opening it and looking at the pictures. Buildings and streets within the village were destroyed. "Sasuke was with them." This caused Tsunade, along with Shikamaru and Ino, to jerk their heads towards him.

"What?" Tsunade spat before she slammed her fist on the table, causing it to shake. "What is he thinking?" she questioned. Neji shook his head.

"I'm not sure, but he's helping them," he said. "He might be waiting for the perfect opportunity to bring her back." Tsunade shook her head with a sigh.

"I doubt it; he's not patient enough. There's something more to it." They all nodded. Naruto was glaring at the ground.

Tsunade laid out all the case files and pictures on the desk in front of her, observing them.

"I need some time to myself," Tsunade began. "If any of you think of anything, return to me. Until then, I'm going to think about this for a while. I will keep you updated," she finished, not looking up to meet their eyes. She was stressed and she needed to be alone. Naruto stepped forward with sadness written all over his face.

"But Baa-cha -"

"Naruto," she spat, causing him to stop in his tracks. She took another deep breath before looking up at him.

She could almost feel the unbearable pain and sadness he was going through just by looking into his eyes. She looked back down at the scrolls, as if it would help her escape the discomfort.

"The only thing we can do now is wait for the ANBU to capture them and figure out what exactly happened. Until then, I need you here," she said, looking back at him. He saw the seriousness in her eyes and he instantly looked down.

She knew what he was going through – he felt useless, unable to aid those most precious to him. He was use to standing up, placing himself in front of the frontal attack and taking things within his own hands. However, that was not a current option. She couldn't have him running around the country looking for two people when he has absolutely no clue where they are. He would have to understand that, and he would have to wait until the time was right.

"Naruto, I promise, if we find out whom exactly they're looking for," she began, causing Naruto to look up. She let out a breath, knowing she would regret this later. "You will be the first person sent on this mission." His eyes instantly brightened.

"Th-Thank you Baa-chan!" he shouted with a smile on his face. "I promise I won't let you down!" She complied, swatting her hand in the air.

"Now leave; I have a lot of thinking to do," she said. They all bowed respectfully and exited her office. She turned her chair around, leaning backwards as she stared out into the village.

_Sakura, wherever you are, please be okay. _


	13. Resemblance and Revelation

_Pain struck through Sakura's body. She attempted to take a few breaths, but an unbearable aching pounded through her, a subconscious shiver rolling up her body. Using all the energy she could muster, she slowly opened her eyes. A moan escaped her lips as if she would suddenly regain the lost energy. _

_Her hands rose to rub her aching arms, but her wrists were stalwartly bore above her head by shackles. It felt as though the energy she previously held had been sucked out of her, leaving nothing but a small ball of energy within her core to keep her alive. Her feet dangled limply beneath her, causing the position she was in even more excruciating. _

_Drip…Drip. _

_There a low, dripping noise echoing through the entire room, as if a faucet was not turned all the way off. Unable to lift her head, her eyes trailed across the room, attempting to locate the incessant sound that echoed painfully through her ears._

_Her body tensed as an instant pain shot through the side of her body. It was then that she noticed that the sound of dripping water was the blood that ran down her sides and onto the hard, cold floor beneath her. She coughed violently, every muscle in her body automatically tensing up in agony. She could feel the dry blood stained onto her lips and her chin._

_The jail door in the front of the room opened up as light shined through the room. Her eyes quickly closed and then opened back up, adjusting to the stranger of the darkness. The door was then closed behind the figure as he gradually made his way into the middle of the room. She immediately glared once she realized who the figure was. _

_Kabuto. _

_His mouth turned into a smirk upon seeing the enraged expression on her face. He walked closer to her and put his hand under her chin, looking straight into her eyes. _

"_Ah, hello, Sakura-san," he said mischievously to her. _

_She jerked her chin away from his grasp, which caused him to smile. _

"_Shrewd, aren't we now?" he remarked. His voice echoed through her ears like a ringing bell, causing a shiver to run up her spine. She so badly wanted to punch his face as hard as she could, to feel his skull crack underneath her knuckles. Kabuto laughed, as if knowing the thoughts processing through her mind. _

_Right on cue, her neck stung defiantly and her whole body tensed up in pain. She almost let out a scream, but she held in her cry as the mark grotesquely burned her entire body. Kabuto chuckled._

"_Quite frankly, I'm surprised that you even survived the curse mark," he replied. Ignoring his remark, she asked some things that had been on her mind. _

"_What do you want with me? Why was I given the curse mark?" she asked all at once. There were so many questions running through her mind that needed to be answered. _

_He smiled at her cunningly and turned around for the door. He opened it and stopped midway, looking back at her._

"_Everything will be answered in due time," he started off, giving her a mischievous smile. "Oh, and you better get used to it here, Sakura-san. You're going to be here for quite a while." He slipped out the door, closing it behind him as the room was once again covered in darkness._

Sakura sat straight up quickly on the futon, short breaths escaping her parted lips. Her fists gripped onto the tainted fabric beneath her palms, causing her fingers to shake and turn an unhealthy, white color. Sweat dripped down her forward, sliding down her cheek bone and landing on her heated leg. Her eyes, trapped against the wall on the opposite side of the room, remained widened from the coursing memories.

After her breath was caught, she relaxed, her head dropping to calm herself down. That was a recollection that seemed to haunt her dreams regularly, reoccurring periodically and taking away the only sense of relief she had from the world. She would never be able to forget the first night she awoke with the curse mark.

Her hand immediately raced upward, clutching the mark as it shot an immense pain through her body. Her frame balled up in pain, clawing at the tattoo as a cry was held in. Her teeth gnawed at her lip, blood almost forming from the force. Her entire body felt as though it was burning from the inside out, sweltering every artery, every organ it came in contact with.

Minutes past, and the pain began to reside. Upon catching her breath once again, her fingertips scraped against the tender area. What just happened?

She carefully stood up off of the couch, walking over to the bathroom, opening the door before shutting it and locking it behind her. She looked in the mirror, pulling back the fabric covering the mark. It was spinning counter clockwise rapidly, the darkened area becoming a blur.

After a few seconds, it slowly came to a stop. The area around it was very irritated, displaying a bright red color. She touched it delicately, but pulled her finger back immediately when pain shot up her neck. She stared at it in the mirror for a few seconds, pondering what had just happened. She was interrupted when a light knock was heard on the bathroom door.

"Sakura?" she heard someone ask. Sakura placed her hoodie over her curse mark carefully before she turned to the door and slid it open, revealing Tsubasu.

"Yeah?" she asked, trying to act as if nothing happened. However, Tsubasu's eyes peered through her own, as though he was trying to read her thoughts.

"You sounded like you were in pain," he stated. She shrugged this off quickly.

"Oh, I stubbed my toe," she said as a small laugh escaped her lips while rubbing her hand against her forearm. Tsubasu stared skeptically at her.

"Sakura, you better not lie to me," he demanded. She quickly brushed him off, knowing that it was hard to lie to him.

"I'm fine, Tsubasu. Promise," she said, walking passed him without another glance. She immediately lay down on the couch, facing towards the cushions and pulling the sheet close to her face. Sasuke, who had his eyes peered open, observed her. After everyone was back in their own spots, he closed his own eyes, falling back asleep.

* * *

After find nothing in the small village, the five shinobi departed Suigetsu's home; receiving many hugs, goodbyes and attempted kisses to Sakura from the said man. They spent more hours on the road, heading east.

"Here looks good!" Daichi said, pointing at the bottom of the hill. The others caught up tohim, glancing down at the small restaurant in the middle of a meadow and directly next to a small stream. Next to it was a sign that said "The Green Dragon." The outside looked very old and run down, but it seemed to have a lot of customers coming in and out to eat. Once everyone looked at each other with a nod, they slowly made their way down the hill and into the restaurant.

"What can I get ya'll?" the waitress asked as she pulled out a small notepad and a pen. Ryuu, who was sitting closest to her, glanced up from the menu.

"We'll all share one bowl of yakisoba with some tea," he said with a smile. She smiled back, finishing writing down the orders and gathered all the menus.

"It'll be right out," she replied before walking away.

Ryuu glanced around him at the furnishings of the small restaurant. It wasn't anything too fancy, but it definitely looked a lot better on the inside than on the outside. It was themed around the color green. The walls, furnished with what seemed to be new paint, were a light green color, with dark green paper lanterns hanging from the ceiling. There were small tables scattered around the room with dark green cushions to sit on. The tiled floors seemed newly refurbished, and there were various paintings against the walls of nature. No wonder there were so many customers.

"This place is actually very nice, don't you think?" Ryuu commented, glancing towards his fellow comrades. To his right, Daichi leaned back, glancing around him.

"Too green," he commented. Ryuu rolled his eyes. Of course he'd have something negative to say.

Ryuu looked across the table where Tsubasu was sitting with Sasuke next to him. They both shrugged in response.

He then looked over next to Sasuke, where Sakura was sitting. She was looking down at the table for some strange reason, as if she was deep in thought.

"What do you think, Sakura?" he asked her, trying to make conversation with her. However, as if oblivious to his question, she kept her head down and continued to stare at her folded hands.

When not hearing a reply, the rest of their teammates looked over to her.

"Sakura?" Ryuu asked one more time. She immediately glimpsed up with a surprised expression.

"Huh?" she asked, glancing around her. Ryuu stared at her questionably.

"I asked you what you think of the restaurant," Ryuu replied. She thought for a minute before eyeing around her, as if seeing inside the restaurant for the first time.

"Oh, it's great," she responded, taking in the scenery.

"Sakura, are you okay?" he asked. She thought to herself for a moment before replying.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Before anyone could ask another question, the waitress returned with five glasses in hand.

"Here's your tea! Enjoy!"

* * *

"Do you smell that?"

The team immediately stopped, taking a whiff of the air and glancing at each other questionably.

"It's a fire," Sasuke replied to Tsubasu. He nodded in response to his answer.

"Let's go check it out." They again began jumping from tree to tree, heading into the direction of the wicked fire that filled the night air.

They reached their destination, perching between the branches of the trees, viewing the village before them. Everything was consumed in the great fire. It was a dead silence, and the enemies who sat the village ablaze were nowhere to be seen.

"Search for survivors!" Tsubasu yelled. They immediately scattered, in search of civilians.

Sakura ran inside a house, quickly examining each room for any people. She hurriedly ran upstairs, opening the closest door to her. Inside, someone was lying on the ground with gashes all over his body. She quickly knelt down to him in search of a pulse. However, his lifeless eyes stared back at her. Her eyes filled with sadness once realizing he was dead.

She stood up and searched the rest of the house. However, the rest of his family was also dead, consumed by deadly flames that linked them to the afterlife. Once the fire became too massive, she quickly retreated downstairs, departing the home. It was then that she heard a loud scream not too far from her location, startling her. She quickly ran out of the house, slamming the door open and running towards the whereabouts of the scream.

She suddenly halted, scanning downward to see footprints belonging to a small girl. Right next to those footprints was another pair, but was very large compared to the small girl's. It was then that she heard the same scream, and she quickly followed the source.

When she turned the corner, she saw the young, screaming girl in the hands of a rogue ninja. The girl's eyes turned towards her, fear and desperation lingering within them. Her small hand reached out to her, attempting to grasp the girl quite too far out of her reach.

Sakura's eyes widened, looking from the girl and up at the man who held the girl viciously by her hair. Her heart was pounding, her eyes widened from the terror rushing through her. She raised her hand, attempting to speak to the man. However, he did not comply.

What seemed to be in slow motion, the man took the kunai in his palms and held it against her throat, slitting it to cease her screams. Sakura stared wide-eyed as the male let go of her hair and let her corpse fall to the ground, the 'thud' of her body hitting the dirt reverberating through her ears.

Sakura stood in place, frozen as realization had not hit her as fast as the girl's life was taken.

Upon reality hitting her, pure fury and rage began pumping through her veins. The male turned his head as his bright yellow eyes stared into her emerald ones.

Shock stung defiantly against her, Orochimaru's eyes implanting themselves into her mind. The ninja quickly turned, sprinting towards the exit of the village.

Sakura quickly ran forward, kneeling towards the girl and checking her pulse. Her lifeless eyes stared up at her, as Sakura could still see a hint of fear and pain deep within them. She bit her lip; glaring at the retreating back of the ninja before hastily running after him.

* * *

Daichi coughed when smoke suddenly entered through his lungs. He swatted the air, as if the smoke would suddenly disappear. He quickly checked the house, receiving no survivors. He exited the house, seeing the other three males standing there with a somber aura filling the air.

"Anything?" Ryuu asked. Daichi shook his head sadly. Sasuke placed his hands in his pockets, shutting his eyes.

"We weren't quick enough," he exclaimed. Tsubasu nodded his head in agreement.

"Where's Sakura?" Ryuu asked. They glanced around them, realizing that she had not yet returned.

"Find her; maybe she found a survivor," he said before they quickly departed, searching for their absent comrade.

* * *

Sakura jumped quickly through the trees as the leaves and branches scraped her skin, slashes developing against her porcelain skin. She retained her eyes on the shadows of the figure as he continued to sprint through the darkness of the forest.

His speed quickened, causing her to lose sight of him. She could feel him continuing to get farther and farther away as she then pumped chakra into her feet, pushing off of the trees and running faster. Her breath was short and rigid, her heart beating uncontrollably. She suddenly stopped when he was nowhere to be seen and his chakra suddenly vanished. She searched frantically all around her when she heard the leaves rustle. Before she could react, he suddenly appeared before her, punching her in the face. She reached out, grabbing him and in response, and they both quickly fell to the ground.

They quickly separated, each grabbing a kunai and sprinting at the other. The kunais clashed, and they separated again before continuing this action several times. They jumped back, flipping the handle in their hand and throwing the kunai. They clashed, darting in separate directions and sticking into the ground and into a tree.

They ran at each other again. Sakura pushed off of the ground, spinning and aiming a wheel kick to the temple of the pursuer. He ducked, stepped back, and aimed a jab at her face. She placed her palm in front of her face, pushing his fist to the side. She aimed several kicks, but he continued to dodge them. He returned his own various types of kicks and punches, but she also dodged and blocked them.

He kicked forward, pumping chakra into his heel. She was about to block it, but she quickly ducked as the kick whizzed straight over her head. He quickly brought his knee up, kneeing her in the face and knocking her back several meters and into a tree. She slid down it, clutching her head as blood dripped down her face. She looked up, seeing the rogue ninja directly in front of her and aiming a punch at her face. She spun out of the way, jumping back and throwing a kunai at him. He dodged it, continuing to chase her.

She dodged his continuous strikes and staggered back by the directness of his assaults. She put space between them by performing several handsprings. He chucked numerous shuriken at her and she stepped to the side as they whizzed straight past her face. He appeared at her side, directing the back of his fist at her cheek. She ducked, spinning her body and thrusting her leg out in attempts to trip him. He flipped backwards, landing on his feet and jumping backwards. She glared heavily at him as his piercing, golden eyes met hers. She pulled out two kunai and rushed towards him, mindlessly swinging her weapon in attempts to pierce his skin, but he continually escaped her assaults.

She flung her foot forward as it came in contact with the tree. He began to smirk, realizing that her tactics were out of pure anger and spite. She spun her body while holding her kunai in a reverse grip position as she let out a battle cry. He ducked and she stuck the blade into the tree. He jumped back, and she pumped chakra into the other kunai, throwing it at him. He brought up his own kunai, pumping chakra into it. They collided, and her kunai soared in the other direction. She appeared above him, bringing her fist in the air and aiming it at his head.

"Shannaro!" she yelled as her body flung down towards him. He disappeared, and her fist collided with the ground, causing the area around them to shake.

* * *

"Guys, over here!" Daichi shouted. Everyone stood around him as he pointed down to the ground. Sakura's footprints were engraved in the dirt, followed by two other sets of footprints. They ran, following the direction of the footprints and looked forward, seeing a small girl with blood splattered around her. They sprinted forward, kneeling down and looking into her lifeless eyes.

"Who could have done such a thing?" Ryuu said miserably as Tsubasu closed her eyes. Sasuke looked forward, seeing Sakura's footprints enter into the forest.

"She went after the ninja. We need to go after her," he exclaimed before he began to run into the forest. Everyone stood up, following him immediately.

* * *

Sakura stood up as smoke covered the entire area, searching frantically around her in search of the ninja. She heard rustling of trees behind her and jumped in the air, avoiding the dozens of shuriken headed straight for her. She was halfway in the air before she realized that there was a large shuriken headed straight for where she was going to land. Her eyes widened as her feet finally met the tree branch, and she quickly pushed off of the branch and headed backwards. However, not realizing that there was a tree behind her, she ran straight into it. The large shuriken's flight curved, soaring around the tree. The chakra string that was connected to the weapon wrapped around the tree, holding her down against it.

"Ngh," she spat out in pain and surprise. She looked forward, preparing herself to avoid his next frontal attack. But, the only thing she saw was his retreating back. It was then that she heard several 'fizzing' sounds next to her. She looked down at the wire, spotting six explosive tags about to go off. Her eyes widened as she drastically looked for a way out.

_Shi –_

* * *

A huge explosion was heard, and smoke quickly flew through the trees, covering the entire area. The four male ninjas held their arms in front of their faces, securing their eyes from the dust that flew in the air. As soon as the area cleared, they lowered their arms.

_Sakura._

"Sakura!" Ryuu yelled. They quickly flew through the trees, searching for the location of their companion.

* * *

Sakura coughed as smoke covered the area around her. She grunted as she tried to sit up, but pain immediately struck throughout her body. She escaped death in the nick of time. However, much of the explosion had still consumed her body, causing her burn marks all over her body. She was barely conscious.

Her eyes widened and she sat up, looking for the ninja.

_No! _

She stood up and took a few steps forward, but falling to her knees as her body stung rebelliously. She took a few short breaths, holding her head up and looking into the direction that the ninja ran to.

_No, he couldn't have got away._

"Sakura-chan!" Ryuu yelled, running towards her and kneeling down, followed by Sasuke, Tsubasu, and Daichi. Her body was covered in scratches, and blood was dripping down her face from a wound on her head. "Are you all right?!"

_No, I have to go after him. He couldn't have gotten far._

"Sakura! Answer me!" Ryuu shouted to her as he tried to help her up, but she continued to stare off into the direction that the male fled to. Orochimaru instantly entered into her mind, with his smirking face, and those golden, snake-like eyes.

"Saku –"

"What?!"she spat, turning her head to glare intensely at him. His eyes widened as her sudden outburst, and he was instantly filled with sadness.

"I-I just wanted to know if you were okay –"

"For the last fuckingtime," Everyone suddenly felt a dark energy surround her as her glare began to deepen. "Stop fucking asking me if I'm fucking –"

She suddenly stopped in midsentence as her eyes widened. Her hand suddenly raced to her shoulder, screaming out in pain as the dark energy began to grow. Ryuu stepped back as her whole body clenched into a ball and her head fell to the ground.

"Shit,"Tsubasu exclaimed, kneeling down towards her placing his left hand on the back of her neck and trying to pry her hand away from her shoulder with the other. Daichi and Ryuu merely stood there with their mouths agape and their eyes widened, not knowing what to do. Sasuke stepped forward, kneeling down next to her as she continued to howl in pain.

"What's going on?!" Sasuke spat.

Tsubasu continued to try to pry her hand away from her shoulder, but her grip tightened even more.

"Sakura, I need you to let go!"he shouted to her, but she ignored him as she fell on her side.

With Sasuke's help, they both grabbed her hand and pulled it away from her shoulder, revealing a curse mark.

Sasuke was frozen in place as he continued to stare at the mark that was implanted on her shoulder and spinning at a quick pace. Orochimaru's smirking face ran through his mind the night he planted the curse mark on his own neck six years ago.

_No. _

"Sasuke!" Tsubasu yelled, finally grabbing his attention. "Help me!"

Sasuke nodded, turning her on her back and pinning her arms to the ground. She continued to flail as the mark burned her skin. She screamed again as a demonic voice mixed with her own. The mark began to spread, trailing up her neck and down the rest of her body. Sasuke stared at her with a confused look and millions of things began running through his mind. _She was right. She was right. _

Tsubasu quickly performed a few hand seals as a dark colored chakra surrounded them.

"Koutai no Jutsu!" he yelled before slamming his hand onto her shoulder. Her eyes widened before she screamed in pain again, and her body began to flail even more. His chakra quickly entered into the seal and the markings retracted into her shoulder.

After a few seconds, her eyes rolled back into her head and she fell unconscious.

"…" Sasuke stared at her, unsure of what to say.

"We need to get to a doctor, now!" Tsubasu shouted before sweeping her into his arms bridle-style. Tsubasu, Daichi, and Ryuu quickly jumped into the trees, followed by a dazed Sasuke.

* * *

Sasuke stood in front of the glass, staring at the unconscious Sakura who lay in a hospital bed. She was covered in IVs, and she had a breathing mask over her mouth. The heart monitor was going at a steady pace and her head and body was covered in gauze. His eyes, however, continued to gaze at the mark placed on her shoulder, which was irritably red.

After a few minutes, Tsubasu walked up to his side, staring at his sleeping comrade.

"How did this happen?" Sasuke asked. Tsubasu slid his hands into his pockets, thinking to himself for a moment.

"I guess you deserve to hear the full story," Tsubasu stated, seeing his reflection in the glass. He almost subconsciously touched his own curse mark, which was located on his back shoulder. "We all have them," Tsubasu stated, which caused Sasuke to look at him. "Daichi, Ryuu, and I were all prisoners of Orochimaru for a few years before she showed up."

"_Hurry up, you bitch," a Sound ninja demanded from across the hall. Tsubasu lifted his head and torso, causing the chains securing his arms and legs to rattle. He heard two of his jail mates, Daichi and Ryuu, do the same. Whispers and gasps were heard from the other prisoners as the footsteps continued to walk down the hallway. _

_After a few seconds, he saw a girl, with her arms held behind her back by a Sound nin, stumbling through the corridor. The first thing he noticed was her short, pink hair that was covered in blood and dirt, but the rest of her body wasn't in any better shape. She was limping terribly on one leg, and her left ear was spewing out blood. However, the next thing that caught his eye was that the guards were also limping and bloody. She put up a good fight. _

_Tsubasu looked up at her face as she turned her head towards them, causing their eyes to meet. Her emerald eyes portrayed confusion, exhaustion, and defeat. He stared back at her with almost the same expression. Without another moment, the guard pushed her forward again, causing her to practically fall to her knees. After they were out of sight, they could hear the two large doors opening to the entrance of Orochimaru's grand room. Minutes later, they could hear the painful scream from the pink-haired girl erupt through the entire lair. _

"Daichi, Ryuu, and I had finally had enough and came up with a plan to escape. But, it wasn't until about a year after Sakura was brought to the lair that we finally ensured it."

"_We need to start this plan today," Tsubasu whispered to his fellow jail mates across the room. Ryuu, who had his head hung low, lifted it up to gaze at him. _

"_We haven't had a chance in months. What makes you think it'll be today?" he asked. Tsubasu kept his body still, pondering for a moment. _

"_Because today is the day Orochimaru puts his own plan into action." _

"_Oh no, it's happening," they heard a prisoner exclaim from another jail cell, causing the three males to look up. _

_Steps were heard, similar to the ones almost a year ago, walking through the long corridor. The pink-haired girl was seen once again, being heaved by her arms through the hallway. It was then that Tsubasu knew his plan would work; the perfect opportunity to escape. Blood was dripping off of her body, and onto the hard, cold floor beneath her. The whispers caused her head to lift and look over to her left. Tsubasu and the girl met eyes once again. She had never looked so desperate and beaten. _

_After they were out of sight, there was only one guard watching the prisoners. Tsubasu pulled his arms out of the shackles, having broken through them. Before the guard could turn around, Tsubasu grabbed his neck and pulled him into the bars, choking him. _

"_Daichi!" Tsubasu yelled. He broke out of his own, rusting chains and stole the keys from his pocket. Tsubasu slammed his against the bar, knocking him out. They quickly freed Ryuu and unlocked the gate, letting them out before quickly running to the other cells, unlocking the other prisoners. _

"Before Orochimaru could finish the process, we rescued her. However, he and Kabuto fled –"

"Before he could what?" Sasuke asked, obviously not understanding the situation.

Tsubasu stopped staring at Sakura to gaze at Sasuke, looking deep within his eyes to find some sort of emotion. Surprisingly, he had found fear in the depths of his obsidian eyes. Without putting much thought into how Sakura would feel, he replied to him.

"She was to be his next vessel."


	14. Fairytales Only Exist in Stories

"_What? How could this happen? Why –" _

"_We believe it has to do with her incredible chakra control and her perceptive mind. Her adaptive skills are phenomenal. If Orochimaru got his hands on her, he could learn any jutsu he wanted."_

"_So…what then?" _

"_Orochimaru was about halfway done with his jutsu when we stopped him. Orochimaru and Kabuto instantly fled. We quickly retrieved Sakura and left the premises before we were stopped," Tsubasu continued, glancing down as if he was picturing the past events. "When Sakura woke up, she told us she wanted to go after Orochimaru and stop him. We offered going with her and we became Team Tsuki." _

"_Why didn't she let her village know she was okay? Why hide in secret?" he asked, remembering the depressed look Naruto gave when telling him about her disappearance. Tsubasu almost shrugged, if not fully understanding it himself. _

"_She's too stubborn," he began. "She didn't want anyone from her village getting involved because she didn't want anyone to get hurt. She felt as though this was something she needed to do herself." Sasuke observed her sleeping form. She looked so peaceful while sleeping, but while awake, you could see the trouble that settled in her eyes. _

Surprise, rage, and confusion were coursing throughout his mind. Haruno Sakura, the young, innocent girl he once knew, was the victim of Orochimaru's schemes; the same, young girl who risked his life for him, who smiled at him every morning before training, who constantly worried about him, who loved him.

He sat back against the chair that was seated in next to Sakura's bed, keeping his eyes on Sakura's battered form. The other three had departed back to the hotel, trusting Sasuke to carefully watch over her. He sat there for endless hours, watching the unconscious girl in complete silence as he was mentally battling himself.

How could this have happened? Sasuke didn't kill Orochimaru. If Sasuke had truly gotten rid of him, she wouldn't have gone through all this pain. She would be in Konoha with her friends, her family, with him.

He leaned forward, placing his face in his hands and letting out the breath he had been holding – as if it would make things a little better. No matter how much he tried to deny it, it was his fault. Orochimaru was still alive somehow.

"_Here and now! The chance I've been waiting for!" Orochimaru shouted at the top of his lungs as his body emitted from the mouth of a snake. "And it's all thanks to you forcing Sasuke-kun to expend the chakra he used to keep me suppressed!" he hissed at the top of his lungs as he could feel himself getting stronger. Itachi merely closed his eyes in response. "I'll take his body for my own and defeat –"_

_He was interrupted when a prodigious blade struck him through his torso, creating a vulgar sound of the tearing of skin and muscles. "-You?" he finished with a surprised expression. _

"_All right, Sasuke," Itachi started with a smile on his face. "Got anything else?" _

"_Ku-hu-hu," Orochimaru laughed sinisterly. "Do don't really think a little cut like this will be enough to stop me –" _

_His eyes widened in fear and pain, stopping him from finishing his sentence. _

"_Th-This can't be…the Sword of Totsuka?!" he shouted. "Itachi, you had it all along?" His body was then sucked away into a genjutsu that would supposedly trap him for all eternity, and the curse mark was forever removed from plaguing Sasuke's body._

Itachi used the Sword of Totsuka to seal him away forever. How could he have escaped? How could he capture her? Things didn't add up.

He gazed back up at the pink-haired girl before him and then to the curse mark on her left shoulder. Her screams seemed to echo through his mind along with Orochimaru's golden eyes and smirking face. She didn't deserve this at all. Why her? Why did all of this happen?

His eyes soon began to become heavy. Not too long later, he put his head down on his arms, quickly falling asleep with the pink-haired girl on his mind.

* * *

Sakura slowly opened her eyes. Everything was instantly blurry, causing her to want to shake her head to rid the uneasiness she was feeling. Her head turned to the left upon feeling someone next to her, sighting Sasuke sleeping soundlessly in a chair. She thought for a moment, almost laughing out loud.

How ironic.

She took off the breathing mask and slowly sat up, clenching her head in pain once she did. It was throbbing immensely as a headache began to form at her temples. She put her back against the bedframe and rubbed her them in a circular motion. Damn. She took a pretty hard hit to the head.

"Sakura?" she heard Sasuke ask. She stopped massaging her temples to look over to Sasuke, who had readjusted himself to look at her. "Are you okay?" he asked stoically.

Her head subconsciously nodded, leaning the back of her skull against the frame and closing her eyes. She didn't have much strength to even talk at the moment, but she muttered a reply.

"Yeah," she breathed out. He observed her weak form, taking in the memory of her screaming on the ground in pain.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked right away. She didn't move, pondering about it for a moment.

"How could I?" she asked in return, lifting her head to meet his gaze. His face was usually emotionless, but she caught a small hint of concern, confusion, and irritation in his eyes.

"I'm part of this team now, remember?" he started off. "I deserve to know." She sighed, folding her hands in her lap and looking down.

"Well, it's not like it's something I'm proud of," she stated as a tingle ran up her shoulder as she thought about it.

"I want to know everything; from your point of view," he said, emphasizing the last part. Sakura looked over at him.

"I'm guessing Tsubasu told you?" she asked, causing him to nod in response.

She leaned back once more, sitting in a more comfortable position before looking out the window, trying to think of where to start.

"All right," she started off again. "I came home one night from training, and I found my parents on the floor, dead."

She clenched her hands into fists as the memory came running through her mind.

"Kabuto was there. Before I could process anything, I was knocked out cold. Next thing I know, I've got the curse mark." She shut her eyes as her head hung low. Hate and sadness began coursing through her, but she calmed herself down. "Every day, I was forced to train to get stronger. If I didn't oblige, I was beaten. Most of my time was either spent on the training field or getting beat to death," she started off, clenching her hands into fists. "I slept in a rotten cell every night, my hands shackled to the ceiling above me."

Sasuke glared just thinking about it.

"They took away most of my chakra, but I was given enough to train and get stronger. Every time I asked to see Orochimaru or Kabuto, they just shook their heads and pretended they didn't hear me," she stated, still confused as to why she was kept away from them. "However, after a year of living in hell, I finally saw them again."

_My left eye was completely swollen, preventing my vision from becoming clear. My whole body was numbed from a poison that someone had earlier injected; although it wasn't an easy task because I just wasn't about to just give up. I was currently being dragged down the dark corridors by two men; heaving me by my arms. I could barely feel my legs anymore; the guards were just dragging me carelessly now. I couldn't lift my head up, but I occasionally tried to look up to see which direction we were heading to._

_Before the injection of the temporary toxin, I was brutally beaten. They had also taken a great majority of my chakra, causing me to rely solely on my taijutsu skills. However, I hadn't stood a chance against my captures. I listened carefully to what they were saying – I heard them talking in quick mutters about Orochimaru's plan coming into action. This is how I knew he had something planned for me, and I could tell this isn't something I wanted to be a part of._

_So, as they dragged me down the passageway, I was drastically trying to think of a last minute plan, a last disappearing act like a magician would perform; but, I was afraid that this was the end of the line for me. The stares of the people in the jail cells dug into my body like a piercing blade. I heaved my head up with the little strength I had left to look at them. Going by, a few sets of eyes caught my gaze, and I found myself staring into them. I don't know why I did so, but there was an emotion within them that seemed so foreign to me now…it was hope. I was drawn to that._

_We had finally reached Orochimaru's grand room, and the doors to the large room were immediately opened before we even reached them. The two large men dragging me quickly entered inside, and the doors shut behind us. They didn't stop as darkness consumed the room. But, a few seconds later, candles were suddenly lit throughout the room – against the walls, hanging from the roof, and scattered all around the floor in a large circle. There were two seats facing each other in the middle of the circle. Fear began coursing inside my body like a hell-bound flame. _

_They threw me in the chair that was closest to the doors. I lazily sat back into it, too tired to move a muscle to even curl my fingers. They tied me to the chair by my legs, and then tied my arms to the rests of the chair. My head hung in exhaustion as the men stood up in attention and quickly left the room, opening and shutting the doors behind them. The only noise that filled the room was my heavy breathing and the small footsteps that seemed to encircle me. I kept my head down and refused to look up at the figure that now stood in front of me with a wild smirk on his face. _

"_I'm so glad you're here, SSSSSSSakura-chhhhhhhhhan," he slithered out sinisterly. My stubbornness became the best of me as I ignored his greeting. He menacingly chuckled at my quietness as I heard him sit down in the chair in front of me. I felt another person, most likely Kabuto, stand beside him and also tie him to the chair he was sitting on. I looked up in curiosity. _

"_Don't worry, Sakura-san, all of your pain will soon be over," Kabuto said as he walked over to me and secured the rope around my limbs. I'm pretty sure they would have gone numb if I hadn't already lost all the feeling in my body. I glared at Kabuto with the little strength I had left and growled out of anger. He ignored the action and bowed to Orochimaru. "Whenever you're ready, Orochimaru-sama," he finished. Orochimaru smirked devilishly in response._

"_Good," he said, closing his eyes. I watched him carefully as his head seemed to lifelessly fall to his chest. A sense of hope coursed through my body until I noticed the palms of his hands glow purple. My eyes widened as it began trailing around his body, down the chair, around the circle, and then slowly up my body. I automatically stiffened as this strange, yet familiar chakra surrounded me. I tried to use the last bit of energy to break the rope as I became very frantic. _

"_Wh-What's going on?" I stuttered out._

"_Just relax, Sakura-san," I heard Kabuto's surprisingly soothing voice say, but I was no fool. _

_The large space in between us suddenly became very heavy. I stared at his seemingly lifeless body. My eyes widened when a cloud of chakra was all of a sudden in between us, as if it was acting as a bridge between him and I. _

_Panic filled my mind as I tried to use the last bit of chakra inside me to break the rope that held me to the chair. I lifted the palms of my hands to the ceiling and fisted them, pulling upward to try to snap the rope, but it was no use – they took all the strength I had left. My eyes wandered back at Orochimaru when I heard him squirm in his seat. His head quickly lifted, making me flinch in shock, and his mouth opened as wide as it could. _

"_Now; you're mine!" he screeched, bringing back memories of the first night I was here when he gave me the curse mark. Except, this time, it was much different. He screamed painfully as an energy emitted out of his mouth. It made its way out of his body and slowly reached out to me. _

_My eyes widened in fear and my entire body began shaking. It was as if adrenaline started coursing through my body. I gasped loudly and began thrashing my body around, but the seat didn't budge as it seemed to be plastered to the ground beneath me. I was only about seven feet away from Orochimaru and the entity slowly made its way over to me. I then, after a year of living under Orochimaru's custody, realized exactly what he wanted with me._

_I was to be his next vessel._

_Tears filled my eyes and I tightly closed them, not wanting them to fall. I again used all the strength I had left into lashing my body around; but, it was still no use – the chair was stalwartly attached to the ground. I then screamed as loud as I could, making it crack. It echoed through the room and could probably be heard by all of the people throughout the lair. _

_I looked up again, seeing the presence only a foot away from me. I pushed myself against the stone chair behind me, hoping that I was too far out of reach for it to grasp me. But, my hope was beginning to drain as I felt it grab my face. My eyes widened as my mouth proceeded also, and the being began filling in my torso, and slowly, it began taking over my body._

_My vision began to blur as the chakra began coursing through my form. I was about to throw all of my dreams away until I heard something abnormal around me. _

_There were many screams filling the room. An explosion suddenly erupted behind me and footsteps of people running, though I couldn't clearly locate it. Then, to my surprise, I heard another explosion in front of me. My seat jerked back from its position and I hit the hard ground, still attached to the stone chair. I began going into a coughing riot as blood rolled down my lips. I then laid my head back on the ground, looking behind me. The large double doors were no longer there with a large amount of smoke in its place. I saw three figures run into the room, followed by a defiant scream that I would never forget. _

"_No!" Orochimaru shouted. It was then that I realized that his spirit that tried entering into my body was pushed out of me from the explosion. My hope had returned. _

_I looked at the rope that was holding me to the chair. It was now almost torn to pieces from the blast. My vision became hazy again as I shook it off and tried removing the rope from my wrists, but it was no use. My energy was completely gone. Three figures appeared at my side, which made me jolt. _

"_It's all right; you're gonna be okay now," a soft voice said. My face turned towards him, but the darkness covered his face. The other figure beside him picked me up bridle-style and I relaxed in his arms. It was then I noticed that these were the three same men who I saw with hope glistening in their eyes. I was saved by my new three heroes. As my body and mind relaxed, I quickly fell unconscious._

* * *

_I hastily jolted upward, gasping for air. However, I instantly regretted this when pain shot up my body. My hand instantaneously grabbed my torso to try to stop the pain._ _Once it subsided, my eyes glanced around the area, not finding it to be familiar to me. I was carefully placed in a small sleeping bag with a backpack under my head for support. Where was I? After a few seconds of thinking, everything had quickly flooded back into my mind. I was rescued by those three men. I looked over, seeing a campfire with three figures surrounded around it. My eyes immediately widened. _

_My heroes._

"_Hey," one of them said soothingly, standing up and about to walk over to me. "Are you all ri –"_

"_Why?" I said immediately, cutting him off. I took a second to think about my question. "Why did you save me?" I asked again, with more detail as I straightened my composure. The three figures simply stared at me, as if looking for the answer themselves. _

"_We couldn't let Orochimaru take over another innocent person," the stronger voice said, staring at the fire. The figure across from him smirked._

"_Yeah, especially a pretty lady like yourself," he said cheerfully, standing up and walking over to me, passing the first figure that stood up. "I'm Nakano Daichi. Nice to meet ya, kid," he said with a smirk that showed his canine teeth. I blinked a few times, but then he took my own hand and shook it. The first figure also walked up to me with a warm smile across his face._

"_My name is Yamada Ryuu," he said compassionately while taking my hand and kissing the top of it, making me blush slightly._

"_Yotsuki Tsubasu," the figure who was still sitting by the fire stated. I looked at him from between Ryuu and Daichi. Observing Tsubasu carefully, I could tell that he was from the famous Yotsuki Clan from Kumogakure. _

"_It's nice to meet you," I said awkwardly, not sure of what else to say. Daichi grabbed my hand and pointed to the fire._

"_Come sit with us, pretty lady." I could see that Ryuu was about to object, but ignored it as I stood up and walked over with them. I sat beside Daichi in front of the fire as Ryuu handed me some fish and I began eating._

"_Arigatou," I said as I took a bite of the fish. This was the most food I've had in days._

"_So, you never told us your name, Pinky," Daichi said with a smirk, giving me a quirky nickname from the color of my hair. I scowled, sticking my tongue in a playful manner._

"_My name is Haruno Sakura," I replied. "And don't call me Pinky," I said, causing Daichi and Ryuu to laugh at the tone of my voice. Ryuu stopped laughing, looking at me in the light and staring at my wounds. _

"_Maybe you should go rest, Sakura-san. You're wounded," he said with a concerned tone. I smiled warmly and shook it off. _

"_Oh, it's no problem," I said putting the fish beside me and pumping chakra into my hand. I placed my palm on my eye, and after a few minutes, I removed it to uncover a perfectly cured eye. "See? I heal easy." They all stared at me in amazement._

"_Wow! That's awesome, Sakura-chan!" Daichi said with his scratchy voice. I couldn't help but smile in response. He reminded me so much of Naruto._

"_You're a medic," Tsubasu stated. I nodded in response._

"_Hai." _

"_That's good!" Ryuu replied. "You can heal yourself quickly once you've regained chakra." I merely nodded in response. After a few minutes of silence, I finished half of my fish and stared at the fire questionably. Ryuu noticed this immediately. "Is there something wrong?" he asked me. I looked up from the fire into his silver eyes._

"_Well, I just wanted to know…Orochimaru…is he…?" I asked as my question faded, not really certain how to put my thoughts into words._

"_No, he's not dead. He got away with Kabuto before we could get a chance to kill him," Tsubasu said, placing his two hands behind him and leaning backwards. I stared back into the fire also, clearly disappointed. _

"_Oh," I said, not exactly knowing what else to say. I didn't know what to think either. Would Orochimaru come back after me? Would he find a new vessel?_

"_What are you going to do now, Sakura-san?" I heard Ryuu ask me. This question was not something that had entered my mind until now. I stared at the stars above us. Returning to Konoha immediately grabbed my attention. That was something I definitely wanted to do, but what about Orochimaru?_

"_Well, I was going to return home, but now…" I stuttered off. I couldn't go home, not yet. Orochimaru is still roaming free and alive out there. I also leaned back on my two hands as I stared at the stars. Everyone else then stared at me. My nails dug deeply into the dirt beneath my hands, forming lines from my fingernails. "I want to go after Orochimaru." Ryuu's eyes widened._

"_What? Why? Are you crazy? He'll just try to use you as his body again!" Ryuu objected as Tsubasu shook his head._

"_No, he can't. Not for another three years. He doesn't have enough energy now since his attempt failed. He'll probably just go into hiding until he's ready for his next body transformation," Tsubasu replied. Ryuu then nodded in response. I then looked at them determinedly. _

"_Then, I know what I'll do. I'll find Orochimaru and end him. I don't want him doing to anyone else what he did to us. He's dangerous and he needs to be killed," I said staring at the fire intently. _

"_You can't just go by yourself." Ryuu exclaimed. I immediately frowned. He was right, how could I defeat Orochimaru and Kabuto by myself?_

"_I'll help ya," Daichi said, picking out a piece of fish from his teeth. "Besides, I can't have a pretty lady like you going around by herself, now can I?" Daichi said with a wink, causing me to smile and roll my eyes. _

"_Oh, get over yourself," I said, laughing slightly before I realized what he was suggesting. "But, you would really go with me?" I asked curiously. He shrugged._

"_Sure, whatever. I need something to do anyway. Besides, I owe that bastard for everything he did to me," he exclaimed. Then he looked over to Tsubasu. "What about you, Tsubasu? Don't you want a part of this action?" After a few minutes of silently thinking to himself, he looked at us._

"_All right, I guess I'll have to keep you two out of trouble," he replied. Daichi and I immediately smiled and then all three of us looked over Ryuu. I could tell he was very uptight about this and was about to argue, but he simply just gave in and sighed. _

"_Fine fine, I'll go too." This made me smile. _

"_All right!"_

"From then on out, we became known as Team Tsuki [Team Moon], because no matter how different we all were, no matter what area we came from, no matter where we were located, we all were under the same moon," Sakura finished. Sasuke stared at her, unsure of how to respond.

"You've been through a lot," he stated. She nodded in response, thinking of the many battles ahead of her.

"I'll never stop until I know he's dead," she stated. Before another word was said, the nurse swiftly slid open the door, interrupting their conversation.

"Sir, will you please leave? I need to check up on her," she said.

* * *

"Sasuke," Tsubasu stated, initiating him to wake up.

Sasuke, who was soundlessly sleeping in a chair just outside Sakura's room, opened his eyes to look at his comrade. He fixed his composure, slowly waking up from the dream he was having.

"Go to the inn and rest, I'll stay here with Sakura tonight."

Sasuke looked through the glass to look at the sleeping girl. She had her back turned, but he could see her breathing was normal. He then got up, nodding towards him.

"Okay," he started off, closing his eyes and turning his head in the other direction. "Take care of her," he muttered before walking off. Tsubasu stared at his retreating back before walking over to the door of Sakura's room.

He slowly slid open the door, shutting it behind him before taking the chair next to her bed before slowly sitting in it. Sakura, who heard him walk in, turned over, looking at the new presence in the room.

"Go back to sleep," Tsubasu whispered. She fully turned around, placing her arm under her head for support.

"You don't have to look after me," Sakura said sleepily. He could tell that she was in a lot of pain by her muttered voice and slow movements.

"You don't have a choice," he stated. She frowned, scooting over and patting the empty area next to her.

"Then at least sit on something comfortable so I don't feel as bad," she whispered. He thought for a moment before obliging, leaning against the bedframe and sitting on top of the covers. "Do you think we'll ever find Orochimaru?" she suddenly asked, causing him to look down at her. She was staring up at him with worried eyes.

He placed his hand in her hair, stroking it delicately like an older brother would.

"Of course we will," he said. "You won't have to worry anymore." She frowned, as if the thought itself was a faraway dream.

"What are we going to do afterwards?" He looked away and thought for a moment. His deceased parents floated in his mind.

"I don't know," he stated simply. She sat up, looking at him in the eyes.

"Will you all come back with me to Konoha?" she asked. She seemed so weak, so vulnerable. He hadn't seen her this way since their eyes made contact at Orochimaru's lair. His heart seemed to tug inside of his chest as a little bit of sadness washed over him. He loved her, like family. She always had a special place in his heart that no one would ever be able to replace.

"You know we can't do that," he replied as his eyes closed, as if not wanting to see her sadness. Her frown deepened.

"But, why not?" she asked in return.

"Your Hokage would never let us be a part of your village." Tsubasu knew better. They would never be able to have the happiness that they dreamed about. They could never stay together forever; nothing ever worked out that way.

"Of course she would! You were captured by Orochimaru, you didn't just join him," she started off. "Besides, Tsunade-sama and I are," She cast her eyes downward. "Were really close. I could convince her." He stared at her, seeing the determination in her eyes before closing his own and leaning against the bedframe.

"All right," he stated, not being able to say no to her. He looked back at her to see a huge smile plastered on her face; something he had not seen in a long time. "Now go to sleep, you need it," he said instantly. She obliged, laying back down and pulling the covers over her shoulders.

"Arigatou, Tsubasu," she thanked before closing her eyes. He moved a few strand hairs away from her face, watching her slowly fall asleep.

Maybe things would work out for the better; maybe they did have a bright future ahead of them. At first, this adventure was about stopping Orochimaru to save future generations. But, along the line, it became more about themselves – to stop the nightmares, to stop the fear, to stop the hiding. With Orochimaru living, there was no light in their future. They needed to get rid of him so that they could all live together in happiness.

Maybe, somehow, someway, they could all live in Konoha with her and continue to be the family they've developed in the past year. They were stronger than Orochimaru; they could defeat him without a problem. He would protect his family, and they would live happily ever after, no matter what it takes.


	15. Selfish Actions Lead to a Shameful Life

"Ryuu?" a voice asked, causing the said boy to turn around to fully speculate the person who called his name. Sakura was standing there as her arm was slowly caressing her forearm. Her eyes were casted down to her feet as she began to scrape the dirt with her heel. "I just wanted to apologize," she started off. "The curse mark started to control me. I didn't mean those things I said to you. I'm so sorr –"

"Don't apologize, Sakura-chan, I understand. You weren't yourself," he said with a smile. She glanced up at him, smiling in return as she stepped forward, embracing him in a hug.

"Thank you, Ryuu. You've always been there for me. Thank you for being such a great friend," she said. A blush instantly consumed his face as his arms circled around her smaller body, taking in warm feeling her body emitted.

"Anything for you, Sakura-chan," he said with a smile. She pulled back, grinning back at his statement.

"You sure you're ready to leave?" Tsubasu asked Sakura as they made their way towards them. Sakura nodded, securing the strap of her bag onto her shoulder.

"Yeah, I'll be fine," she stated, walking forward until she was in the front of the group. Daichi smiled, running up until he was side by side with her.

"C'mon! Let's go!" he exclaimed, walking forward as if he was leading his team into battle. Sakura smiled, rolling her eyes and following him. The rest did the same.

* * *

"Where are we now?" Tsubasu asked, jumping from tree to tree next to Sakura. She brought up the map in her hand, looking down at it, but occasionally looking in front of her to see where she was headed.

"We're in Otogakure," she said as her voice trailed off. Everyone else's ears immediately perked up, looking at Sakura as her eyes began to fill with various emotions.

"Should we check out his old hideout?" Ryuu asked. Tsubasu nodded, looking at the rest of his team.

"Maybe we can find some clues," he said, glancing back at Sakura. "Do you know where it is?" Sakura looked around as her eyes casted on a familiar, pointed rock from within the trees.

_Sakura groggily opened her eyes. The first thing she saw what seemed to be the ground quickly moving beneath her, followed by a sharp pain in her stomach. She tried adjusting her arms to move them from the position behind her back, but was unable to do so because of the thick rope that bore her wrists together. The piercing discomfort she was feeling was the sharp shoulder blade against her stomach. She was carelessly thrown over someone's shoulder like a potato sack. _

"_Wh-What?" Sakura asked sleepily as her head scanned the area around her, viewing various ninja with the Sound symbol inscribed on their headbands. One of them looked over at her and smirked. _

"_Looks like the girl's finally awake," he stated. _

"_What's going on?" she asked, squirming her arms uncomfortably tied behind her back. The brawny man holding her haughtily laughed. _

"_Why would we tell you now? That'd ruin the fun," he exclaimed. Sakura bit her lip in anger, watching her surroundings. There were six men, including the one carrying her. They were swiftly gliding through the trees at a fast pace, heading deeper within the forest as the sun was barely rising over the horizon. An idea quickly formulated in her head; hopefully she could hold her own against these ninja by herself. _

_As the ninja jumped onto the next tree, it caved in from his weight. Using this to her advantage, she stretched her legs outward, kicking one of her legs into the air to knock his hand from over her thighs. With the other, she thrusted it over his head, the momentum carrying her body over his shoulder and down towards the ground. The ninja instantly reacted, shouting towards his comrades. _

"_Get her!" he yelled, grabbing their attention. She plummeted towards the ground, landing in a kneeling position before sprinting in the other direction, twisting her wrists around to try to free her from the bonds securing them together. _

_Shuriken instantly flew towards her. She ducked and they soared right over her head and into the tree in front of her. _

"_Ototon: Kireme Yure!" a ninja yelled from behind her. She glimpsed at the area behind her. He gathered chakra into both of his hands thrusted his arms forward, causing vibrations to suddenly emit from his palms. The two vibrations slammed together, creating a larger pulsation that flew through the air towards her. _

_Upon reacting, Sakura pumped chakra into her foot and placed it against a tree, pushing off of it with so much force that she glided through the area, barely missing his attack. The chakra infused vibrations glided through the trees, slicing everything in its path._

_She quickly rolled to a stop, hurriedly standing up and hiding her chakra signature and hiding within the trees. _

_The six ninja landed on the tree, frantically looking around for their "prisoner." _

"_Where did she go?!" one yelled, not wanting to find out what the consequences will be if he loses her. Before anyone could say another word, rustling of leaves were to the right of them. In a split second, the girl soared through the air, kicking the said ninja in the face and sending him flying through the trees. A distant 'crash' was heard many meters away from their current location. _

"_Get her, now!" the leader screamed. She landed on the branch as the rest of the ninja ran towards her, taking out a kunai and aiming it high. She swerved out of the way, avoiding the sharp blades from slicing her skin. _

_She flipped backwards, falling towards the ground and landing on her feet. Four of the ninja followed her, continuously swinging their blades. She ducked under the larger ninja's arm as he swiped forward, pumping chakra into her knee and bringing it upward into his gut, sending him flying in the other direction and into tree, knocking it over. _

_She swiftly side stepped to the right as the edge of the kunai scrapped her cheek. As his arm continued to thrust to his side, she quickly spun on her heel, lifting her other foot to perform a wheel kick. She pumped chakra into her heel before it connected to his temple. He soared in the other direction, coming in contact with a tree seconds later, knocking it over, and causing dust to fly around him. _

_Once landing on the ground, a ninja pushed off it, twisting the kunai in his hand so that the edge was pointing directly in front of him, aiming it towards her stomach. She spun her body ninety degrees, avoiding his sudden stab towards her torso. Because of the momentum of his thrust, he still began to fall forward. Sakura took her foot behind her and pumped chakra into it, smashing the dorsal portion of her foot into his stomach. She heard several ribs cracking on contact as his body soared through the trees. _

"_Die!" she heard one of the ninja yelled. She looked above her as the said enemy was falling towards her with his kunai held in both of his hands, aiming downward at her skull. She quickly evaded, causing the ninja to come in contact with the ground and stabbing it. He quickly stood up, ready to strike again. However, she had took a few steps back before rushing forward, performing a raiz kick to his face. The chakra enforced attack shattered his bones instantly, forcing him back into the ground, creating a crater below him. _

_Sakura safely landed on her feet; taking a few, short breaths, trying to wiggle her wrists free of the rope. She did it. She defeated them. _

_She stood up, turning in the direction of Konoha before she heard a few chuckles from above her. She immediately scanned her brain of the ninja she just fought against; she forgot about one. Turning, she glanced at the ninja above her. A wild smirk was plastered on his face as his piercing eyes stared back into her own. _

"_Now I see why we were sent to get you," he started off. "Now, let's see how you do against me." Without hesitation, he suddenly appeared at her side, aiming a fist at her face. She ducked, taking a few steps backwards to avoid his continuous strikes. Her eyes scanned his shoulders, predicting his actions before he made them. He smirked widely as his strikes never ceased. "You're reading my movements! This is wonderful!" he exclaimed maliciously, as if this was the best fight he's had in a while. _

_She jumped backwards, avoiding his next strike. However, he followed her, continuing his assaults. He jabbed forward and she shifted her head to her right as his fist flew by her left ear. Instantly, he began to radiate a strong chakra that turned into a high pitched sound. _

_She cringed in pain as this chakra began seeping into her ear. She could feel her eardrum burst as blood instantly began seeping down her face. He suddenly grabbed her head and pushed it against the tree behind her. Another sudden ringing erupted through her ears, causing her eyes to suddenly water from the pain. She brought her knee up to kick him in his torso, but he jumped backwards, avoiding her attack. _

"_Big mistake, girl," he stated cunningly as another ringing sound erupted through her other ear. Confusion instantly spread across her face. He ran at her once more as she prepared herself for his attack. _

_However, as she began to parry his next attack, his movements became blurs, combining themselves with the green around her. She was suddenly struck in the face by his fist, causing her to stumble backwards. She jerked her head back up to gain her sight on him, but everything seemed to blend together. _

_The only thing she felt was sharp pains as she continued to stumble backwards, unable to comprehend what was going on around her. She soon could not even keep her balance as she was suddenly slammed against a sharp rock behind her and slowly fell to the ground in pain. She so badly wanted to grab the wound, but her hands were still tied behind her. _

"_Tough luck, kid," he said, bending down towards her as he continuously started to beat her, but she was unable to move from the position she was in against the rock. _

There were still blood stains on the rock.

"Sakura? Do you know where it is?" Ryuu asked, scanning her. She nodded, looking towards her right.

"Yeah, this way," she said, jumping that way. The four males followed her, jumping after her.

They jumped on the ground, observing the flight of stairs in the middle of the forest; leading down to what seemed to be a secret hideout in the middle of nowhere.

"Here we are," Ryuu said. Daichi huffed, not wanting to set foot in that hell hole again.

"Do we really have to?" he whined as a shiver ran up his spine. Tsubasu rolled his eyes.

"Quit complaining; this is something we have to do," he stated, making his way down the huge flight of stairs and into the darkened entrance. Daichi and Ryuu soon entered, followed by Sasuke and Sakura.

They took out glow sticks, holding them up in the air to look around the area. They were currently walking around the murky corridors with the same designs on the walls that imprinted themselves into their minds. There were torches located on the walls that were all burned out and cob webs covered the walls and the ground. They walked down the hallway in complete silence as the only thing that was heard was the crunching of dirt beneath their feet.

They came to a split in the room, separating into six different directions. They all looked at each other, nodding and splitting up. The recent room was once again filled with darkness.

* * *

Sasuke slowly walked through the hallway as his feet made a small echo, looking for a particular room. Once finding it, he grabbed the handle and turned it, slowly pushing it open as a loud creak ricocheted through the room. He scanned his old bedroom as memories instantly filled his mind.

He slowly strode forward, sitting on his old bed. A sudden shiver ran up his spine, causing him to grab his neck where his curse mark used to be. However, it was no longer there.

He opened the door to his closet, scanning the sets of clothes that he was forced to wear when under the apprenticeship of Orochimaru. Even thinking about it made fury rise within his veins. He grabbed the clothes, ripping them off the hooks and throwing them across the room. He tightened his hand, back-fisting the wall as the slam echoed throughout the corridor. His teeth clenched in anger as his whole body began to shake.

Was there something he could have done to stop this?

Images of Sakura's frail body struck his mind with the curse mark circulating around her porcelain skin. Her fingernails ran down her neck, scratching the sensitive area on her body until it bore a bright red color out of irritation. The black swirls continued to spread as she continued to scream defiantly to the new-bound pain that the devil seemed to impair on her himself.

She didn't deserve what he had done to her. All she ever did was put others first and her life was suddenly taken from underneath her. Finding your parents dead on the floor with their corpses rotting in a pool of their own blood is horrifying…he would know.

That's why she put up those walls around her heart. Her parents were brutally murdered; she was captured, given the curse mark, and was left in a cell for an entire year with little or no food for days. He didn't want to admit it, but she had it worse than he did. At least his brother did everything for him out of love.

However, even through the hardest times, she always found a way to smile. He didn't realize it until now, but that's where strength truly relied. Not in shunning out your emotions and those around you – but smiling no matter how tough things became. That was something he would always envy about her.

No matter how much she would never admit it, she really needed him. This was his chance to pay her back for everything he put her through – so that she won't make the same mistakes he did. In the end, he never really severed those bonds, but merely put them aside for a time being. Because, no matter how hard he tried, he was always going to be their friend, and they were always going to be his.

With this thought in mind, he made his way out of the room and on his way to look for his companion.

* * *

She quickly scanned the floor beneath her, revealing various amounts of blood stains covering the floor and even the walls. She traced her hand on them, feeling the warmth that it seemed to leave behind. Her eyes were then drawn to the cells that appeared on each side of the hallway. She looked closely inside as she walked by, seeing dead bodies rotting in the cells and bugs, dirt, and blood everywhere. She continued walking down the hallway for a few minutes until she found what she was looking for.

She slowly opened the door, revealing a huge, single prisoner cell. She held her glow stick in the air as the light filled the room with a glow. The lengthy nights of sleep deprivation, limited food access, rusty shackles, brutal beatings, blood stains, chakra depletions, and medical injections filled her mind. The year she had stayed here had been the longest year of her life, tormenting her sleep almost every night. She had never felt so hopeless in her entire existence.

Her eye was instantly caught when a red cloth was seen towards the corner of the room. She slowly walked over, bending down to the object and wiping off the dust that gathered onto it. A Haruno symbol stared back at her with an intense gaze.

"_Come, girl," the ninja said as he unlocked the shackles holding her against the wall before she fell to the ground out of exhaustion. He slammed her against the wall, roughing her up a bit and tearing the outer shirt of her outfit that she had been wearing for the last year before it fell to the ground._

_Other ninjas entered into her cell with wild smirks on their faces. They approached her, beating her until she could no longer feel her body and the continuous slamming of her head onto the ground. When they believe she had enough, they tied her hands behind her back and pushed her out the door, leaving the symbol of the Haruno's to hide in shame in the darkness of the room. _

"Sakura," Sasuke stated, grabbing her attention. However, she didn't seem to hear him as she was consumed by her own thoughts. He slowly walked over to her before looking over her shoulder to see the red cloth in her hands.

"They took everything from me," she stated with a somber tone in her voice. Sasuke grabbed her arm and standing her up.

"We need to put the past behind us and focus on the future," he said, causing her to ponder to herself for a moment.

"You're right," she began, breathing in as a sigh escaped her throat, as if trying to settle some inner turmoil. "Let's go." They soon left the cell, looking for their teammates.

However, with absolutely no traces onto Orochimaru's current whereabouts, they left the hideout with nightmares and past memories placed in their minds that would be never forgotten.


	16. A Silhouette in the Darkness

A few bushes rustled before a small dog emitted from them; sniffing the ground as if searching for something. He continued forward, wagging his tail. He was close to something. He stopped dead in his tracks upon seeing some foot prints that matched the smell he was looking for. He barked loudly, getting the attention of his master. The ANBU member walked up beside him and knelt down, patting the dog on his head for his achievement. The leader, along with the rest of the squad, appeared.

The captain, as if ignoring the burned down village and the dead bodies, stared into the darkness of the forest. Their objectives, Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Sasuke, departed in that direction.

"We're close." With nothing on their minds but their mission, they quickly disappeared, hastily making their way toward their targets.

* * *

"Let's take a vacation!" Daichi said cheerfully. Sakura instantly looked up from the map to roll her eyes. Oh no, it's not like they're on the run or anything. What a spectacular idea.

"Why not?" Ryuu said, looking over Sakura's shoulder to view their location. "We have to go through Yugakure anyway to get some more supplies." Tsubasu shrugged, massaging his shoulder a bit. They were ambushed by a pack of rogue ninja yesterday and were forced to fight. They were scraped up pretty bad – maybe a short vacation was a good idea.

"I guess it couldn't hurt," Sakura replied, looking over at Sasuke. He shrugged as well.

"Then to Yugakure we go."

* * *

Upon arrival, they were instantly overwhelmed. People from all over the country had come to participate in the annual festival they held every year. Young children were running across the street with flags, young adults were mingling in building corners, couples were walking hand-in-hand, and salesmen were seeking opportunities to make a profit.

The entire village was covered with decorations to draw travelers in. There were streamers – tons of them – hanging from balconies with Yugakure's insignia plastered on them. However, the biggest thing that stuck out was the smiling faces of the people. Their joy instantly illuminated the air, making the five ninja almost forget about their worries and struggles.

Almost.

"What do we do first?" Ryuu asked, looking over to Tsubasu.

"This wasn't my idea," he replied with a shrug.

"Hot springs; duh!" Daichi replied with an ear-to-ear smile; showing his sharp canines.

"Maybe we should see if we can find anything about Orochimaru first," Sakura started off. "This isn't exactly a vacation get-a-way, you know." Daichi frowned instantly.

"But Sakura-chaaaaan!" he yelled, almost flailing his arms in desperation. "We've been running around for the last – I don't know – ever! Let's just have one day to relax and not think about that snake-bastard. We deserve a break," he finished, looking up towards her with his puppy eyes. She gave him a blank stare, not too thoroughly impressed with his expression. I mean, she invented that look, damn it.

"He's right, Sakura-chan," Ryuu said, smiling at her warmly. "As long as we've been a team, we haven't had one day to ourselves. We've all been kinda tense lately. What could happen?" She frowned more. Oh, well, I suppose being noticed by someone after flyers of their faces hanging around everywhere is out of the question. You're right; let's take a break.

"Sakura, we'll be fine," Sasuke said from beside her, placing his hands in his pockets. "If anything were to happen, we can easily slip behind the crowd without anyone noticing us," he replied, all unSasuke-like. She looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. He mustbe tired if the Uchiha wants a break. She closed her eyes, exhaling with a defeated sigh.

"Okay, okay," she said, crossing her arms. "Oneday, but that's it!" she finished. Daichi smiled happily, throwing his fist in the air.

"Yes!" he yelled, instantly running in the direction of the springs, causing Sakura to sigh.

* * *

Sakura walked through the hallway before entering the hot spring; there were a ton of girls gathered around, enjoying the exhilarating steam that soothed their muscles. She walked forward, placing her towel down on a hanger before slowly stepping into the boiling water. After her body adjusted to it, she sat all the way down into the water with a comfortable sigh. All of her muscles instantly relaxed upon contact, causing her to lean her head back against the warm gravel. She closed her eyes, concentrating solely on the therapeutic water.

Maybe this would be good for her; a break. All they've ever done for the past year was constant wandering and searching with no breaks in between. Even if they are on a mission, their bodies can only take so much strain. She could tell by how much she was enjoying this bathing that she was in desperate need of a break.

She sank down deeper into the water until her curse mark came in contact with the water, causing her to take another sigh in comfort. It felt as though the water was seeping into every muscle and tendon in her body, slowly the healing the aches and pains. She reached up to it before she slowly began massaging it. She hadn't been this relaxed in a while. Maybe a few days of vacation wouldn't hurt – or a few days. Maybe even a few weeks would be good.

As if it was acting as a reminder, her curse mark pulsed once, causing her face to scrunch in pain. Her grip on it tightened, and she lowered her head until it was inches above the boiling water. What was she thinking? As long as Orochimaru was still alive, so was the curse inside of her. She couldn't just give up now. They've worked so hard, attained so much. She had to defeat him so that she could live in peace, go back to Konoha, return to her friends, and return to her old life.

The faces of her parents instantly appeared in her mind, causing her to sadden. Orochimaru took everything from her, broke her spirit down until there was nothing left. He took two of her most important people away for his own selfish needs. He took her away from her home, beat her, locked her away to rot in a cell with nothing but the clothes on her back and a curse mark to remind her where she was.

She tightened her hand into a fist as anger began to wash over her. She could never be happy as long as he was still alive. One day, she will return to Konoha and to her friends to live in happiness. But, until then, she needed to focus on one thing and one thing only: killing Orochimaru.

She slowly stepped out of the water, placing the towel around her body before she made her way inside. She located her room, walking up to it before sliding open the door to look for her clothes. However, her clothes were not the first thing she spotted.

The first thing she came in contact with was a bare chest, water dripping down between the creases of the pecks. Realization, however, had not hit her hard enough until a deep voice called out her name.

"Sakura," Sasuke said as he looked down at her, unfazed by the fact that they were both in towels. She looked up at him, causing her face to instantly heat up. His wet, dark hair stuck to the side of his face, proportionally framing his high cheek bones. Water continued to drip down his body and around his muscles, sliding down until it hit the hard wood floor beneath them. His dark, obsidian eyes stared into her emerald ones as she stared back at him with surprise.

"Wh-What are you doing in my room?!" she exclaimed, trying to use her arms and towel to cover as much of her body as possible. However, this had caused her breasts to lift more, showing a lot of cleavage. He instantly looked to the side, hiding his blush with his bangs.

"Uh, Daichi lit his towel on fire and needed another one," he stuttered with a cough. Sakura looked to her side as well, avoiding looking at his body.

"I'll, uhm, get you another one," she said as Sasuke moved out of her way. She walked over taking out a dry towel from a cabinet and walking back over to him, handing over the towel as they avoided each other's gaze.

"Hn," he replied before quickly exiting the room and shutting the door behind him. She hid her face in her hands, trying to rid the blush that consumed her face. That was embarrassing.

Sasuke quickly walked back to the room, attempting to get the image of Sakura's body out of his head. Her wet towel stuck to her body, showing off her curves in all the right places. Her pink hair stuck to her shoulders while framing perfectly around her face. Her beautiful, green eyes stuck into his brain; he not being able to get her look out of his head. He slid open the door quickly, throwing the towel at Daichi, who was currently naked.

"Take your damn towel," he spat before entering into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him. Everyone raised their eyebrows in unison.

"What's his problem?"

* * *

"All right, let's split up," Tsubasu said, holding up the map of Yugakure.

They were standing right outside their motel. The village, however, was not a small one. They needed to see if anyone here has heard of Orochimaru and his whereabouts. If they can any small clue, they would at least have a lead. At this moment in time, they had absolutely nothing.

"Ryuu and Daichi, you stay around the main plazas and talk to people who live here. I'm sure they've seen something." Ryuu nodded.

"Sure thing," he replied. Daichi yawned, clearly not ready to get down to business.

"Yeah, yeah." Tsubasu then looked over at Sakura.

"Head downtown and see if you can find anything there. There are a lot of attractions," she nodded.

"On it." Tsubasu then looked at Sasuke.

"You and I are going to head down to the roughest parts of the city; if anyone knows about Orochimaru, we'll probably find them there." Sasuke nodded. Tsubasu then looked around at his teammates, getting ready to start the investigation.

"All right; we'll meet back here in three hours," he finished. They all nodded in reply. "Head out." They made their way towards their respective destinations.

* * *

"You sure you haven't seen or heard anything, ma'am?" Ryuu asked kindly. The elder woman shook her head with a slight frown.

"I'm sorry, boy, but no one's heard anything from the Sound Village since Orochimaru's death. I'm afraid I can't help you," she finished. Ryuu returned the frown, nodding in understanding.

"Thank you so much," he said as she returned a nod. He turned around, making his way from the fruit stand over to Daichi, who was slouching in a corner.

"Nothing," Ryuu exclaimed. Daichi shrugged.

"Is it any surprise to you? It's been like, two hours and we haven't gotten anything," he stated, scratching the inside of his ear. Ryuu kicked the dirt slightly, as if it would relieve some anger he was holding. He calmed himself down, looking towards the direction his other teammates headed to.

"Maybe they found more than we did."

* * *

Sasuke slammed him up against the wall, holding him by his collar. The man let out a sharp gasp, curling his fingers around his wrist in attempts to adjust his position.

"I know you have information," Sasuke stated menacingly while tightening his grip. The man closed his eyes while biting his lip.

"I-I told you I don't know anything!" he shouted back at him.

Tsubasu, who was standing behind Sasuke, slowly pulled out his blade to intimidate him. The sound of the blade against the sheath echoed down the alleyway. If he were to scream, no one would hear him. The man's eyes widened in fear.

"Please! Stop!"

"Tell us what we want to know," Sasuke started off, igniting a chidori in his right hand. The current of electricity circulated around his fist and forearm, ready to strike at any time. The man began to flail while screaming at the top of his lungs.

"Okay! Okay! I'll tell you what you want to know! Just please – don't hurt me!" he yelled. Sasuke softened his grip, letting his feet come in contact with the ground. He continued to corner him, however, his Sharingan staying in contact with his eyes.

"What do you know?" Sasuke asked. The man gulped as a drop of sweat rolled down his face.

"W-We think he's stationed somewhere east of the Fire Country – on one of those islands," he began. "My buddy saw some Sound Ninja heading on a boat to the - what are they called - Whirlpool Islands? We think he's out there somewhere," he finished. Sasuke immediately tightened his grip, staring into his eyes.

"Don't ever tell anyone about this," he spat darkly. He nodded quickly before Sasuke let him go. He quickly exited the alley in fright. Tsubasu placed his blade back into its sheath as the lightning quickly dissipated around his forearm.

"Go look for Sakura, I'll find the others," Tsubasu said. Sasuke nodded before they both disappeared.

* * *

"I'll have a glass of sake," Sakura stated to the bartender. He nodded with a smile.

"Coming right up!"

Sakura hadn't found a single clue for the last couple of hours. She talked to everyone she could find, but not a single person has seen anyone from the Sound Village for a few years. She placed her head on her hand in aggravation, staring blankly at the wall in front of her. They had absolutely no leads and no ideas. How were they going to figure out where to go from here? Just keep heading east? They're gonna hit the ocean sooner or later. ANBU were probably on their tale, and if they head any closer to the Fire Country, they're bound to get caught. Once that happens, her mission will be foiled, and Orochimaru will continue to live. What was she supposed to do now?

She sighed again in aggravation, rubbing her temples to calm herself down – a habit she had picked up from her ex-sensei over the years.

"Here ya go!" the bartender said cheerfully, placing down a nice glass of sake.

That's not the only thing she inherited.

"Hey, cutie," Sakura heard from beside her.

She looked over, seeing a gruffly man in about his mid-twenties, staring at her with a sparkle in his eye. His slurred speech and dilated eyes displayed that he was clearly drunk.

"How about you and me head back to my place and make some sweet love?" he explained with a rise to his eyebrow. He pulled back his hand, sliding it back into his sleek, green hair, as if it somehow made him look a lot cooler. She stared at him annoyingly before turning back to her drink.

"Get lost; I'm not in the mood," she stated before taking a few sips. He heard a few chuckles from his friends back at the table before coughing, trying to clear his throat.

"Look, sweetie," he began. "I'll give you the time of your life, just give me a chance to rock your world," he said slyly, grabbing a tight hold on her forearm. She snapped her head at him as her eyes narrowed in disgust.

"Don't touch me," she spat. As if she had said the exact opposite, he slid his hand upward, trying to cock a feel. However, before he could get a quick grab, she propelled her fist forward, slamming her fist into his face. He flew backwards, hitting the wall and cracking it. He fell to the ground in agonizing pain, along with a long drip of blood sliding down his nose. Everyone in the bar instantly turned their heads towards her in surprise. The rest of his male friends stood up in anger.

"Hey!" one of them yelled. "What's the big idea?!"

"I told him not to touch me," she stated, taking a couple more sips of her drink. With a creek from the chairs sliding back against the tarnished wood, the boys stood up and began to walk forward angrily.

"You're gonna pay for that, you bitch," another stated, cracking his knuckles. Everyone else in the bar began to sink down in their chairs, not sure of what to do. The bartender hid behind the counter, not wanting to get attacked.

"Get her!" one of them yelled before they all instantaneously ran towards her. She was about to stand and defend herself when someone appeared between them, holding his blade out in front of him with a menacing glare.

"Don't touch her," Sasuke said with his Sharingan flaring. Sakura raised her eyebrow angrily. The men stepped back in fear, realizing who the man before them was.

"Uchiha Sasuke?" a man said. "I-I'm so sorry, we didn't realize…" he stuttered off. Sasuke glared even more, holding his blade up even higher.

"Get out of here, before I change my mind about killing you," he stated.

They all instantly nodded, quickly picking up their friend and running out of the bar with their tails in between their legs. He turned back towards his teammate as his Sharingan quickly disappeared.

"Are you all right?" he asked. She turned back to her drink, glaring down at it.

"I could have handled them myself," she stated angrily, clearly offended at the way he protected her.

"I was helping you," he stated stoically. He instantly changed the subject, remembering the man from earlier. "We know where Orochimaru is," he commented. Sakura instantly turned towards him with surprise.

"Let's go."

* * *

"_We leave bright and early tomorrow morning," Tsubasu exclaimed, looking over Sakura's shoulder to the view the map. We can reach the Whirlpool Islands in about three days. Once we reach the boat to head over to the islands, we'll think of a strategic plan to ambush him and take him out," he stated. "This will all soon be over." _

If what the man said was true, they only have about three days until they reach his base. Once they get there, they'll take him out, and all her nightmares and fears will be over.

Sakura brought her knees up to her chest, holding her arms so she was sitting comfortably on the grass. She was away from her teammates, sitting in an open field watching the sun set over the lake. It was a beautiful scene, something she hadn't seen in a long time. It seemed to reflect the hope igniting inside of her. She could see the end in full view – the sun was setting on her mission.

The wind blew softly through her hair as she took a deep breath, relaxing to the slight caresses against her face. Soon, she'll be able to return to Konoha safely. Soon, she'll be able to see her old friends.

"_Sakura-chan?" _

Naruto. She missed him – so much that it hurt. She missed seeing his bright smile every morning. She missed going on missions with him, she missed being his best friend, she missed Team 7.

Her grip tightened around her arms. She couldn't break down now, everything was almost over. They would all return to Konoha, and she'll be back in Team 7 once again, just like she's been dreaming of.

Sasuke. His face pressed against her mind like glue. There were some things about him that she just didn't understand. He returned to Konoha because of Itachi, but why did he act like he suddenly care about her?

Back when they were genin, he never gave her two glances. He occasionally saved her because it was crucial to their mission, but he never truly cared. So why would he follow her and stick around when he never needed to?

"_Did you ever miss us?" she said suddenly. Sasuke looked at her, and Sakura looked back at him in surprise, stunned by her sudden outburst. She looked in the other direction, hiding the small blush that creeped onto her face. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to –" _

"_All the time."_

She closed her eyes, letting out the breath she had been holding. If what he said was true, then he did miss them; he did want to be with them once more and regain the title of Team 7. However, she still felt as though he saw her as weak. Even after all these years, he still tried to defend her. Why? She didn't need his protection; she's not the same person she was four years ago. She was a completely different ninja and she could take care of herself. She didn't need him or his help.

"Sakura," she heard from behind. As if on cue, he walked up behind her. She didn't need to look back at him to know that he had a stoic expression covering his face.

"What?" she asked in a slightly annoyed voice.

"I wanted to talk to you," he stated in a stoic voice. Even now, she could never tell what exactly was going on in that brain of his. He said things in the most monotonic voice, but his words said otherwise. She glanced back over at him, thinking to herself for a minute before she stared back at the sunset. As if that was an invitation, he sat down beside her, also staring at the beautiful image displayed before them.

"What did you wanna talk about?" Sakura asked, not all too sure if she wanted to hear his response. A sigh escaped his lips, and the next few things that she heard utterly surprised her.

"There's darkness in your heart," he started off, causing her to turn her head towards him, "He has that affect – Orochimaru. He did the same for me, you saw it," she stared at him in complete awe, realizing that he was being open with her.

He continued to stare in front of him, not making any sort of contact with her.

"I know you're doing this mission out of concern for others, but I also know the effects that the mark inflicts on its victim. It seeps chakra not only the body – but also into the soul. It seeps deep and devours any good that's left. It changes the person…don't turn out like me," he said, stopping for a moment to think back over his own thoughts. Sakura stared at him for a few more seconds before she found her voice.

"Sas –"

He turned his head towards her, cutting her voice off when she looked into his eyes. For the first time in her life, she saw sadness, regret, and pain deep within those obsidian depths. It caught her off guard with nothing to say.

"I'm sorry, for everything I've done," he finished, emotions running through their hearts and minds. He slowly placed his hand on top of hers, entangling their fingers together. She looked down, astonished by his sudden actions. Heat quickly rose to her face as she glanced back up at him, watching him as he began to lean forward towards her face. She was frozen in place – not sure what to do. She just sat there, watching him as he leaned down closer and closer to her lips.

Orochimaru's piercing gaze flashed in her mind. Fear, anger, and pain coursed through her system. She couldn't do this – not now.

Sakura instantly coughed, looking in the other direction to force his attempted kiss to a halt.

"It's, uhm, getting late," she started off, rising to her feet. "We have to leave early in the morning – I better get some sleep," she stated, not letting him interject anything before she darted off towards the cabin.

Sasuke sat there – almost dumbfounded by her sudden exclamation. The only thing he stared at was her retreating back before she emitted back inside. Once she was gone, his eyes scrunched together in embarrassment and anger, slamming his fist down upon the innocent grass below him.

"Damn it," he whispered. He got up, his hands placed inside his pockets and head hung low, following her inside with not even a 'hn' escaping his lips.

* * *

Tsunade once again took a large swig, swallowing down the alcohol that smoothly graced her lips. She slammed the empty glass down on the desk, glaring down menacingly at the empty bottle beside her.

"Tch," she grunted, turning her chair around to stare at the moon that hung high in the air. She then leaned back and tried to sit in a comfortable position. "This is so frustrating," she exclaimed to herself for what seemed like the hundredth time. No matter how much she thought about Sakura's random disappearance, she could not come up with a logical explanation for who her captor was. She shut her eyes once again as a memory unfolded within her mind.

"_What is your conclusion?" Tsunade asked the medical examiner. He took off his mask and gloves, walking up to the Hokage before scratching his head. _

"_It seems as though they were cut down by a medical technique," he exclaimed, referring to Sakura's deceased parents. "Chakura no Mesu to be precise." Tsunade sighed in aggravation._

"_Is that the only thing you've figured out?" she questioned as desperation lingered in her voice. The medical examiner nodded._

"_I'm afraid so."_

The information she gathered from him was too broad. They could not figure out who specifically formed the jutsu. There were medical ninjas all around the world; how was she supposed to figure out who it was?

She continued to ponder as she recalled the other known information she was given.

Three other boys were kidnapped several years before Sakura. Also like Sakura, dead bodies were found at the crime scene with signs of Chakura no Mesu being used. This evidence was left behind, but nothing else was documented. Tsunade leaned forward on her elbows and rubbed her temples simultaneously. Whowould want to take four teenage ninjas?

Sasuke's walking silhouette instantly sprouted in her mind; along with a smirking Orochimaru standing in the distance. Tsunade's eyes suddenly widened as she stared at the darkness of Konoha.

"…No."


	17. What Goes Around

Sounds of pattering feet were heard throughout the corridors as a figure ran hastily through the hallways. He turned a tight corner, almost slipping as he increased his speed and holding on tightly to a scroll he held in his hands. He stopped in front of a pair of very large, double doors and knocked on them swiftly.

"Come in," a sly voice responded. The sound ninja opened the door and entered the room, closing it behind him as he stared inward into the darkness. Small candles illuminated the dark areas of the room.

A figure was sitting in a throne in the back. His legs were crossed, and he was casually leaned back, staring into of the eyes of the man who just entered.

"Thissssss better be important," he said, obviously in a bad mood as golden eyes pierced through the darkness. The man swallowed in fear before stepping forward and crouching down onto one knee, holding the scroll he had in his hands up high above his head.

"We have news, sir," he responded. He looked down at the scroll before standing up, walking down the steps to his throne and grabbing the scroll. He opened it, and scanned the writing before smiling maliciously.

"SSSSSSo, It looks like SSSakura-ssssan and her team continues to look for usss," he laughed to himself. "Good, I think it'ssss about time to put my plan into action," he said, walking back to his throne.

He clapped his hands together, as if calling a dog.

"Zakugai!" he yelled. A very large man, about 7'3", entered through the side door, ducking right under the frame, and stepping forward.

"I have a mission for you."

* * *

"C'mon, Tsubasu! Just pick a card!" Daichi whined, holding out a stack of cards in front of Tsubasu's face as they walked. Tsubasu glared in return, pushing the cards away from his face and continuing to look forward.

"I said no," he replied sternly, starting to get annoyed. Daichi pouted, trying to pull off a cute face.

"C'mon! Then I won't ask you again! Please please please please please please please –"

"Fine. As long as you leave me alone afterwards," he said, causing Daichi to beam. Tsubasu pulled a card and looked at it.

"Remember your card!" he said enthusiastically. "Now put it back wherever you want in the pile." Tsubasu slipped it back into the middle of the pile, and Daichi began to shuffle. "Is it," After a few seconds, Daichi pulled the third card from the pile and held it out to him with a bright smile on his face. "This card?" Tsubasu sweatdropped.

"No," he replied stoically. Daichi gave him a surprised expression, and then pulled out another card.

"This one?"

"No."

"Oh, wait. It's got to be this one! Right?"

"No."

"Ohhh, ehe. Then it has to be –"

"You're an idiot."

"Oi! No need to be so crude, ya bastard!"

"Shh," Sasuke said immediately, cutting their dispute off. Everyone stopped in place, glancing up at the Uchiha and then around him, realizing what was going on. There was a huge chakra, followed by many other chakras, heading straight for their destination.

"Hide!" Tsubasu quietly yelled.

Everyone quickly scattered, hiding in the trees and in the bushes while hiding their chakra presence. Sakura swiftly slid under a bush and lay on her stomach, watching the open area as the strong chakras hastily made their way towards them.

After about a minute, a huge man, who looked to have stood taller than seven feet, stood in the middle of the open area. A large number of sound ninja followed suit. Sakura immediately gritted her teeth.

_Awesome. _She thought sarcastically before observing him carefully. She could tell that he was wearing a few layers of armor, which would be a little difficult to break through. He was also carrying various bags and straps of weapons with two large scrolls on his back. But, what was the strangest of all was what was on his face. It looked to be some sort of metal helmet that covered his head and the top, right side of his face. Where his eye would be, there was a red light. The large male quickly scanned the area. It had to be some sort of tracking device. When he stopped and look over at the area that Sakura was located, it quickly blinked red. Sakura's whole body tightened.

Daichi smirked from the branch he was hiding in from a few yards away.

_Finally! A real fight! _he thought while glancing at all of the henchmen that quickly followed. He then looked over to where Tsubasu was hiding and gave him a pleading look. Tsubasu immediately shook his head, and did some sign language that they had all learned in case of a situation such as this.

"_No way; there are too many of them. The best chance we have is to hide and hopefully they will continue on their way." _Daichi immediately pouted, and responded with his own sign language.

"_C'mon, Tsubasu! When was the last time we had an awesome fight like this?" _Tsubasu rolled his eyes.

"_Just shut up and be quiet." _

Sasuke watched as the bulky man began to approach Sakura's location. He also took note of the blinking light on his face when he began to head over towards her. The large man pulled out one of the scrolls on his back, bit his finger, and spread it across the scroll as an axe appeared in his hand and ran towards Sakura at full speed. He held his weapon high.

Ryuu, who was also watching, flinched as he screamed.

"Sakura-chan, get out of the way!" he yelled, getting Tsubasu and Daichi's attention.

Sakura, who was still underneath the bush, sat up in a crouching position, slammed something on the ground and on the tree beside her before quickly jumping against a tree and pushing off of it. She watched from in the air as the said man swung his axe downward, coming into contact with where Sakura once stood moments before.

Once the axe hit the ground, the area around him exploded, and everyone ran for cover. Sakura landed on a tree and hid behind it, covering her head for protection. However, the Sound Ninja took notice of where everyone else was hiding and began their attack. The battle had begun.

Hearing where Ryuu stood, many ninja jumped to where he was located. His eyes widened slightly and he flipped backwards, grabbing on the closest horizontal branch, swinging himself around it and propelled himself forward before his foot came in contact with the ninja's face in front of him. He jumped off the next branch and landed in the open area where he stood before. He pulled out some kunai and stood in a defensive stance. Sound Ninja appeared from within the trees and surrounded him. He cast a glance, looking for Sakura. But as soon as he did, the ninja took this time to attack.

Tsubasu jumped down from the tree he was hiding in and unsheathed his blades on his back. The same second he touched the ground, his body became a blur, and he was suddenly behind a few other ninja. They were frozen; deep gashes covered their bodies and blood splattered everywhere. They fell to the ground, dead. His single, visible eye was filled with determination.

He swung his body around and deflected the upcoming shuriken aimed for the back of his head. Two ninjas appeared right beside him and he spun on his heels. He stuck his arms out and the hilt of his blades came in contact with the ninja's temples. They died instantly from such a hard hit to the head.

Daichi stood in the middle of a group of Sound Ninja. After a few moments of standing there, two of the ninjas raced towards him. Daichi, who merely stood there lazily with his head hanging low, saw the ninjas approaching from the corner of his eye through the thick strands of his hair. The blades on his wristbands emerged from his long sleeves.

The ninjas who were running towards him flinched, but continued towards him. Daichi flipped horizontally in the air, letting one of his blades skid across the ground. Daichi flicked his wrist and the dirt from the ground flew in the air, right into one of the attacker's eyes. He yelled in pain and staggered backwards. Daichi then flexed his foot, which came in contact with the top of the other ninja's head. His face smashed into the ground and Daichi skidded across the ground as the other ninja ran after him.

Sakura stood up and looked at the large man from the other side of the tree. She glared, once seeing the man fully stand up with absolutely no injury at all.

_The explosion didn't even affect him. _

The man immediately turned his head towards her. He disappeared and reappeared right above her tree, making her eyes widen.

_He's fast!_

She pushed off the tree, jumping backwards with tremendous speed as the tree she was once standing on was now obliterated into nothing.

Sasuke, who was watching from afar, was about to run towards him when all of a sudden many Sound Ninja appeared in front of him. He mentally cursed as he unsheathed his blade, pumping chakra into all around his body and manipulating lightning all around his blade.

He struck many of the ninja around him, and they fell to the ground with a 'thud.' Sensing someone coming behind him, he flipped the sword in his hand until he was holding in a reverse grip position, and then plunged it backwards until it went all the way through the ninja behind him. He sent an electric shock through the victim and then retracted it back, causing the ninja to fall to the ground.

He looked back up towards Sakura, who continued to dodge the aggressor's attacks. He glared.

_Shit._

Sakura invaded another attack from the enemy's axe, flipping backwards a few times, and sliding against the ground until she halted. She remained in a crouch position, watching the attacker as he slowly stood up, looking at her through the spectrum attached to his face. She watched him carefully and slowly stood up, observing him as he didn't move from his position.

"Who are you?" she asked immediately. The man gave her a smirk.

"If I told you that, wouldn't it ruin the fun?" he replied in a deep, snooty voice.

Sakura glared at him in an irritated manner.

The man gave a haughty laugh in return, holding his stomach as if he was amused by her antics. He then calmed himself down and looked back at her.

"You're a cute one. I'll give you that," he said, causing her to 'tch' in response. "My name is Zakugai. You're Haruno Sakura, I assume?" Her gaze never retracted.

"What's it to you?" she spat.

"I'm an assassin, of course," he laughed. "But don't worry; I'm not here to kill you - just your friends. After I knock you out, I'll kill them, and you'll be coming back with me to Orochimaru's hideout," he said almost sarcastically. Sakura saw his hesitation as he spoke and scanned his body movements, and then looked at him in his eyes. They were dilated.

"There's something you're not telling me."

"Oh? Am I?" he responded.

"What are you lying about?" she observed, referring to the dilation in his eye.

"Well, then why don't you defeat me, andI'll let you in on a little secret?" he said, swinging his axe until it was resting on top of his shoulder. She instantly sat back into a defensive stance.

"I might just take you up on that offer." He grinned in response to her eagerness.

"Well then, why don't we get started?!" he yelled as he swung his heavy axe down on the battlefield.

She jumped in the air away from the flying debris and landed against a tree trunk with her feet firmly against it and pulled out some shuriken, throwing them towards his head. He yanked his axe back up, deflecting the upcoming shuriken, making him smirk in response.

"You better start off strong girl, or you'll end up getting killed!" he said, disappearing from where he once stood, causing a gust of wind to occur around the now empty spot. Her eyes widened and she immediately spun while pulling out two kunai and held them in front of her, creating an 'x.' Zakugai was behind her, and forced his blade down, coming into contact with her kunai. Their eyes came in contact - her widened eyes with his fierce ones.

_He's huge; how is he so fast?!_

He pushed down against her and the kunai in her hands began to break. Her foot met the tree, and at the last second, she pushed off, avoiding Zakugai's axe that almost sliced her in half as she flew away to the ground and landed on her back.

After sliding back for a few seconds she pushed off the ground and flipped over, sliding back against the ground on her knees as she tried to halt her body. Zakugai landed on the ground and gave another haughty laugh.

"I almost got ya there, pinky," he said as Sakura examined the now, broken kunai in her hands. Her grip on them tightened out of anger before she threw them away from her on the ground. She stood up angrily and stretched out her sore muscles from hitting the ground so hard and observed him carefully.

_He's fast and immensely strong; his weapons are almost unbreakable. I only have one way of approaching this, s_he thought to herself as she reached for her pouch, pulling out a pair of her spiked gloves. _I need to outsmart him. Maybe if I can get close enough without being cut in half, I can break through the armor he has around his body. _

She slipped one of the gloves on, readjusting the way it fit on her hand. _If I can do that, I could inject poison into him and numb his body. Once that's done, I can get the information I need from him. _She thought once more before pulling on the other glove and readjusting the glove before tightening her hand into a fist. _The armor around his face seems to be a device to track my movements. If I can break it somehow, his vision will be down to about 50% and I can attack him from his blind side. _

"Are you gonna attack, or am I going to fall asleep out of boredom?" he laughed confidently. Sakura smirked in response.

"Not very patient, are you?" she asked. _The first thing I need to do is separate him from that axe. Once I do, I'll take out his eye, and then the armor._

"Come at me with intent to kill!" he yelled, swinging his axe triumphantly.

"You asked for it," she said in response while making a hand sign. Clones appeared around her, and they ran straight for Zakugai.

Once they were close enough, he swung his axe horizontally. All of them disappeared except for the real one, which jumped on top the axe. She pushed off of it and flipped over him.

He saw her movements and twisted himself, continuing his horizontal strike. She watched him and fell to the ground in a crouch and watched as the axe flew above her head, slicing a few strand hairs that couldn't escape fast enough. The axe stuck into the ground as Sakura turned her body and flexed her foot, aiming a swift kick to his head. He pulled his head back, dodging her heel.

She jumped back out of his range before running back towards him. He watched and countered her movements, letting go of his weapon and aiming his bulky elbow towards her face.

She noticed his actions, however, and created a clone and jumped off of it and over his body. His elbow came in contact with the clone and it disappeared. As she was in the air, she outstretched her arm, reaching for the hilt of his weapon.

He saw this maneuver and extended his arm fully while continuing to twist his body around. She was about to grab his weapon when she saw the movement of his feet and looked back. Right before his fist smashed her face, she held her arms up in defense, and his fist came in contact with them. She flew back into a tree, knocking it down and rolling against the ground.

After a few seconds, Sakura coughed and sat up, wiping away the blood that dripped down her chin.

_Shit, that hurt._

He laughed confidently as he pumped chakra into his hand. The axe flew from in the ground and into his hand. Her eyes widened.

_How did - _

"You almost had me there, runt," he said as he placed his weapon back comfortably back on his shoulder. "But," He showed her one of his palms, which had Japanese symbols on it.

リターン (return).

"My weapons can return to my hand whenever I activate the two seals on my hands. Good luck separating them from me," he said with a haughty, malicious laugh. She glared.

"Tch," she muttered as she subconsciously tried to wipe away the dry blood on her mouth. _He almost broke my arms. I'll have to try something else. _She stood up and made a hand sign as two more clones appeared beside her. Zakugai couldn't help but let out a laugh.

"That won't work on me!" he said as he flipped his axe to his side and ran straight at her.

The two clones disappeared into the trees. Sakura took out a few kunai and jumped back, throwing them straight at Zakugai.

He smirked as they came in contact with his armor and bounced right off of him. He appeared directly in front of her and swung his axe diagonally down to the right. She dodged by side stepping to the left. He flipped the hold of his axe and swung it the other way, which she dodged again. Sakura carefully watched his movements, predicting where he would swing and what he would do next.

All of a sudden, she backed up into a tree and suddenly ducked when he threw his weapon horizontally, cutting the tree in half. She rolled to the side and jumped back up to her feet, flipping out of the way of his vertical attack. The two clones from the trees threw kunais at him, which hit the axe, deflecting the attack. The axe came in contact with the ground, creating a huge explosion, and sticking deep within the cracks of the earth. She saw this as her chance and disappeared, reappearing behind him, running straight at him with her fist full of chakra.

_Now! _

He felt her presence behind him and turned his body around while sliding his hand on the hilt of his blade, so he could pick it up from the ground and swing it from behind his body to strike her. However, when he tried to pull it out from the ground, it wouldn't budge.

His eyes widened and he looked back, seeing chakra strings around the axe. He followed the source and they were attached to the kunai the clones previously threw. They were up in the trees, with chakra strings around their hands and forearms to prevent him from yanking his axe from the ground. He turned his head back to see Sakura staring right into his eyes from two feet in front of him and a chakra fist even closer.

_Fu -_

Her fist came in contact with his stomach, and he flew back at a tremendous speed, knocking down trees before finally skidding across the ground and hitting a rock wall, creating a huge explosion as he hit it.

Everyone's heads turned as they heard this huge explosion, stopping suddenly in the battle they were in.

_Sakura-chan, please be okay! _Ryuu thought before he felt a presence above him. He turned his head and saw a ninja coming down from a tree, aiming a kunai firmly in his grip at his head. He side stepped it, grabbed the forearm of the ninja, and threw him away from him.

He glanced around the area, seeing how many ninja were surrounding him. _Looks like I'll have to turn to this, _he thought to himself before doing a handsign.

"Kokuangyo no Jutsu!" Suddenly, the area around the ninjas became sudden darkness and Ryuu had disappeared from their view. They all flinched and drastically looked around, not being able to see anything in front of them. All they heard were the screams of their comrades and the 'thud' once they hit the ground.

After a few seconds, one ninja remained. He ran as fast as he could, but it was too late. Ryuu appeared behind him and struck him in the back with twelve shuriken. They all fell to the ground dead and Ryuu made a hand sign; the genjutsu was released.

Returning back to regular scenery, Ryuu looked around as his comrades were also in the heat of battle. Tsubasu and Daichi were fighting side by side, using ordinary taijutsu and weaponry skills. Something seemed off. These ninjas weren't that skilled. Why would someone send these ninjas if they weren't strong enough to even kill? Unless…

_Sakura-chan._

"Tsubasu! Daichi!" Ryuu yelled to them. They immediately looked over, followed by Sasuke. "These ninjas were supposed to be a distraction! They're after Sakura!" Their eyes immediately widened.

"Shit," Tsubasu cursed while fending off another ninja. Sasuke looked over to where the explosion was moments ago before and looked back to the last ninja behind him.

"Chidori Eisō!" he shouted as his original chidori shaped into a spear and he spun himself, striking the ninja where his heart was. The ninja coughed up blood and fell to the ground.

Sasuke discontinued the jutsu and he headed off deep within the forest where Sakura was located. Ryuu saw this action and glared, running towards him, but he was cut off by more ninja. He took out more kunai and sat in a defensive stance.

_Shit. Sakura, don't die. _

Sakura slowly walked over to where Zakugai was. However, she couldn't find him from within the white smoke that covered most of the area. She stopped about fifteen meters from him when she could hear the rubble began to move.

She saw him stand up from within the rocks and debris. His armor was completely broken, and it fell off his body to hit the ground with a clash. However, the armor on his face was still covering his head, which made her glare. But, to her surprise, he began to laugh once he stood up.

"You're clever," he started off while shaking the broken armor off. "But, I think you don't realize something," he continued, cracking his neck. "I was fast already; now that I don't have that heavy armor to carry! I'm even faster than before!" He suddenly disappeared from his place, making her eyes widen.

Suddenly, he appeared behind her and she spun on her heel, jumping backwards. But, he jumped forward, punching her in the gut, which caused her to slump forward and spit out blood. As she started to fly backwards, he grabbed her by her shirt and pulled her back, slinging her over his body and throwing her towards the ground.

She hit the ground and smoke covered her body. She moaned in pain as he grabbed her by her collar and chucked her in the other direction. She flew before hitting the ground, hard, and slowly, but surely, rolled to a stop. She gently scrunched in a ball, holding her stomach in pain.

_Shit, my ribs, _she thought. In the next moment, he was in front of her, holding her up by the front her hood and slammed her against the tree, causing her to flinch in pain. The stretching of her stomach caused her to moan in pain, which in turn, initiated Zakugai to laugh.

"You think you can beat me?! Tough luck, you runt!" he said before slamming her against the truck of the tree, causing her to flinch again.

She grabbed his hand to try to loosen his sturdy grip.

"I had to admit, you almost had me there, but you're not good enough!" he said, letting her go as she fell to the ground and landed on her ass, before she fell to her side and held her stomach in pain.

He watched her as she began to heal herself.

"A medic, are we now? Well, I guess I can't let you go and do that." He stepped back and pulled out one of the scrolls from his back.

He bit his finger, spreading the newly formed blood across it, and a mace looking weapon appeared in his hands. But, instead of there being a handle, it was just a long chain that encircled his arms.

"Now it's time for the fun to begin," he started to say as he brought the mace up high in the air before bringing it down, straight to where Sakura was laying. Sakura's eyes widened as she tried to move.

_Move, Sakura…Move! _she thought to herself as she pushed her body up and jumped out of the way, jumping deeper into the forest, running as fast as she can away from Zakugai. His laughed echoed through the entire forest.

"I guess this battle has turned into a game of hide and go seek!" he yelled, as she could hear him getting closer and closer. She turned her head once hearing metal clash with a tree and saw the mace heading straight towards her. As she jumped out of the way, she could feel the chakra from the mace emitting strongly off of it. She continued to jump back. She heard him jumping from the trees behind her and she jumped to the side, keeping her eyes on him.

She looked to the side to see the mace disappear from within the trees, causing her to stand still for a moment. She then heard the metal ripping through the leaves and she looked to the other side of her to see the mace swinging straight at her. She couldn't move fast enough and the mace skinned deeply within her left arm. She flinched in pain and gritted her teeth together as the flesh from her arm tore.

_Kuso! _She jumped back and held onto her arm, which had blood dripping from it like a fountain. Her legs wobbled beneath her as she struggled to stand. Zakugai whipped the mace towards her, but it was aimed lower. Sakura tried to move, but her body seemed to fight against her as the chain from the mace wrapped around her ankle and a few of the spikes from it stuck into her ankle. She cried out in pain and Zakugai pulled the mace by the chain, dragging Sakura along with it.

He whipped the chain in the air as Sakura flew above him and smashed her into the ground. The chain around her ankle weakened, and she skidded across the ground as dirt and blood covered her body. Sakura breathed heavily, trying to catch her breath and ignore the pain that erupted throughout her system. She tried to sit up using her elbow, but it failed.

After a few moments, Zakugai slowly made his way over to her, swinging the mace around like it was as light as a feather. Sakura's hair was covering her face as she lay still in the position she was in. He snickered as he stood meters from her, looking up and down her body.

"And here I thought you were going to be a bit more of a challenge. Guess I was wrong. Oh well, I had some fun," he said to her. Sakura silently chuckled to herself, causing Zakugai to give her a questionable look. She glanced up at him through the strands of hairs that covered her face. Her eyes were filled with determination.

"I think you forgot something," she stated simply. Zakugai raised his eyebrows before hearing a rustling in the bushes behind him.

At the last second he looked up, and his axe hit the spiked ball of his mace, which caused the mace to break into pieces.

His eyes widened, seeing one of her clones in the trees, smirking triumphantly. He then heard Sakura move from in front of him, causing him to look back. But, with no time to dodge, a shuriken at tremendous speed flew into the blinking red light where his eye would be. He gasped out.

"No!" he yelled as both of his hands went for the shuriken.

"Chakura no Mesu!" he heard her shout. He opened his only visible eye to see chakra surrounding her hands, which took the form of two large scalpels. She raced for him and his eyes widened. She crossed her arms in the form of an 'x' and then drove them downward across his chest, causing two great, deep gashes to appear across his chest. He spit up a large amount of blood and staggered backwards.

Sakura then pulled out two kunai, attaching strings to them filled with chakra. She kicked him square in the chest as he flew backwards into a tree. She threw the kunai, and the wires wrapped around Zakugai's body and the tree, holding him firmly against it.

She appeared in front of him and grabbed the top of his head, smashed it against the tree and looked in his eyes.

"Looks like I won our bet," she spat with a smirk on her face. Zakugai chuckled in response while spitting out some blood. She pumped more chakra into her hand and slammed his head against the tree again. "Now tell me what I want to know, or I'll be cutting through that thing on your head," she said determinedly. He smirked maliciously.

"I think youalso forgot something," he replied as the seal on his palm activated.

She then felt a raging chakra from behind her and noticed her clones disappear. She turned back so see the axe, blade first, heading straight towards her head. Her eyes widened in fear.

_No._

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE [MUST READ]:

Hey everyone! I hope you're enjoying my story so far!

So, I've decided to do a little competition. Whoever figures out what the secret of Orochimaru is will be given the next chapter of this story! Hurry and become the first one to get a sneak peek!


	18. Sharper than the Point of an Axe

"_Looks like I won our bet," she spat with a smirk on her face. Zakugai chuckled in response while spitting out some blood. She pumped more chakra into her hand and slammed his head against the tree again. "Now tell me what I want to know, or I'll be cutting through that thing on your head," she said determinedly. He smirked maliciously._

"_I think you also forgot something," he replied as the seal on his palm activated. She then felt a raging chakra from behind her and noticed her clones disappear. She turned back so see the axe, blade first, heading straight towards her head. Her eyes widened in fear._

_No._

It seemed like it all happened in slow motion.

The axe was about to slice through Sakura's head when all of a sudden Sasuke appeared from within the bushes to her side and jumped forward, grabbing Sakura and pushing them both out of the way. Sakura looked back at Zakugai while they were in the air and she watched as his eyes widened in fear. The sharpest part of the axe embedded itself into his skull and into the back of the tree.

Sasuke and Sakura both hit the ground, with his arms fully wrapped around Sakura's head and torso. They skidded to a halt and they both lay there for a few seconds.

The rest of her team emitted through the trees, looking at the scene in front of them before running towards their hurt comrade.

Sakura, who was staring at the dead corpse for a few seconds, finally processed what had just happened.

"No!" she yelled, pushing Sasuke's arms off of her and standing up, running up to the corpse and scanning it. But, he was in fact, dead.

The rest of her team stopped in their tracks, watching Sakura questionably. Sasuke sat up, looking at her.

She spun on her heel, glaring intently at the Uchiha.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" He glared back.

"I just saved your life," he replied. She gritted her teeth.

"What you did was ruin the chance I had at gaining more information on Orochimaru!" she screamed. Sasuke stood up, holding his stoic composure.

"You wouldn't haveany information on him if that axe tore straight through your skull," he retorted back, scowling at her.

"I had him rightwhere I wanted him!" she shouted angrily, turning away from him while limping from the pain, though she would admit it. "I told you to stayout of my way!" she said, turning her head towards him again.

"If I did, you'd be dead," he said, causing the area to erupt in a long silence. Sakura slowly turned away, glaring at the ground in front of her.

He walked over towards her and grabbed her arm, turning her towards him to look her in the eye.

"Why won't you let me help you?!" he yelled at her. Her eyes subconsciously filled with tears.

"Because I'm not the same girl you left behind, Sasuke!" she started off, actually calling him by his first name. "I'm not that pathetic, weak, little girl you left behind five years ago!"

She ripped her arm from his hold and pushed her index finger into his chest.

"I've grown, Sasuke, and I don't need to be protected by you anymore! So get outof my life!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, echoing throughout the forest.

Ryuu and Daichi stared at her with widened eyes as Tsubasu stared at her apathetically.

_What has he done to her to make her react this way? _he thought to himself, observing the two in front of him. They stared into each other's eyes for a few moments before Sasuke shut his eyes and turned away.

"Tch, fine. Good luck on your mission," he said angrily, beginning to walk away. Sakura lowered her head to the ground as the tears in her eyes threatened to fall.

"Good! Walk away, Sasuke! Like you always do!" she shrieked, causing him to stop. He was tempted to turn around until he stopped himself and continued on into the darkness of the forest.

Sakura stomped off in the other direction, walking past a set of trees and bushes.

Ryuu reached out to her subconsciously and was about to say something, but he couldn't find his voice.

_Sakura-chan._

Daichi was about to make a remark, but this time, he couldn't think of anything to say. Tsubasu began to walk in the direction of where Sakura was located. Ryuu looked at him curiously.

"What are you doing?" he asked. He kept walking.

"I'm going to go talk to her," he said before turning back towards him. "Put a high level genjutsu around this area. ANBU will probably stop within this area looking for her. If they see the bodies, they'll know what direction we went. Make sure everything's securely covered." Ryuu was about to object, but then Tsubasu disappeared behind the trees. He held his breath for a minute before sighing in defeat and looking towards Daichi.

"I guess we better gather our stuff together,"

Sakura stomped through the forest until she found a river. She angrily threw off her boots and stuck her feet in the water before sitting down on the river's edge. She leaned on her knees, staring at her reflection for a few minutes before starting to heal the deep wound in her shoulder.

After a few moments, she heard someone emit through the trees and she quickly wiped the upcoming tears. Tsubasu unstrapped his blades before sitting down next to her and placing the two weapons on the ground next to him. Sakura ignored him and continued to heal herself.

"What happened?" Tsubasu demanded. Sakura glanced at him.

"What do you mean?" she asked stoically, still obviously angry. Tsubasu continued to stare at her.

"You know what I mean. What happened between you and Sasuke all those years ago?" he asked softly.

Sakura stared at him for a moment before looking at her reflection in the water.

"I was in love with him," she started off, catching Tsubasu by surprise, even though he didn't outwardly show it. "We were on the same genin team. At first, I was just attracted to him by his mysterious personality and his good looks, but after about a year of being on the same team with him, I fell in love with him," she said, fiddling with her hands, not looking up from the stream beneath her. "But, he was too focused on revenge to even notice or even care about me."

"His brother murdered his family," he said aloud, recalling what happened in his past. She nodded.

"We had chuunin exams that were being taken place in our village," she started off again. "During the second phase of the exams, Orochimaru infiltrated the village and gave Sasuke the curse mark and told him that he could give him the power he needed to gain revenge on his brother," she trailed off.

She once again began to recall the events that happened six years ago.

"After that, he became even more distant. A few months later, during the middle of the night, he left the village."

Her hands tightened together, and a single tear flowed down her cheek.

"I tried to stop him; I told him," she said, taking a breath. "I told him that I loved him and that I would do anything in the world for him. I begged him not to leave, but he just knocked me out and laid me on a bench. Then, he left," Sakura ended. Tsubasu watched her.

"What did you do then?" he asked. She thought for a moment.

"We tried going after him countless times, but we couldn't find him. I was weak back then; it was then I realized just how weak I was," she said, wiping the tears from her eyes. "I asked the Hokage if she would train me. So over the next three years, I became her apprentice."

Her eyes saddened once remembering her beloved shishou.

"My best friend and I trained as hard as we could, and then, we went after him again."

"The blonde one from before?" he asked. She nodded in response.

"Hai," she began again. "We found him, but he escaped with Orochimaru." She closed her eyes. "We returned home, and then we got news that he killed Orochimaru," She opened her eyes. "A few months later, I was kidnapped," she said, recalling the memory.

_After Naruto left from walking her home, she stepped inside the house, closing it behind her and turned the lights on. She immediately froze. Something seemed off. She walked deeper inside the house._

"_Okaa-san…? Oto-san…?" she asked as her voiced echoed through the house, but all she heard was silence. She looked in all of the rooms until she came in contact with her parent's room. She could already feel the uneasy feeling on the other side of the door. She gulped and reached her shaky hand towards the door handle. She grabbed it and slowly pushed it open. What she saw made her eyes widen and her stomach turn. She saw both of her parents, lying on the floor, dead. _

"_Hello, Sakura-san," a voice said from deep within the shadows. She saw the moon's rays reflecting against glass and immediately knew who it was. _

"_Wh-Why?" Was all she could say at the moment as her gaze returned to the dead bodies on the floor in front of her. He chuckled in response._

"_Don't worry too much about it, Sakura-san," Kabuto said. All she felt was a striking pain to the back of her head and the rushing feeling of falling forward. She hit the ground and darkness consumed her. _

"I woke up a few days later on the back of a Sound Ninja. I fought and fought until I couldn't anymore. They beat me until I couldn't move a muscle," she said while thinking to herself. "And then I woke up in Orochimaru's layer," she ended.

Tsubasu looked at her, and then up at the sky, recalling his own memories of his past. After a few seconds, he looked at her, remembering everything she said about Sasuke and the way she was feeling now.

"You still love him," he stated. This caused her to look straight at him.

"I-I don't," she stuttered. He stared at her intently.

"If you didn't love him, then why would you care so much? Why did you get so angry at him? Why did you cry moments before, when the entire time I've known you, you never shed a tear?" he asked.

She stared at him for a few seconds and then glanced the other way.

"Sakura, you still love him."

Her fists tightened and she quickly stood up, facing her back towards him.

"It doesn't matter whether I love him or not," she began while glancing towards the trees. "We need to complete our mission; that's what's important right now."

After a few seconds of silence, she spoke again.

"I'm going to head back to the others and finish healing my injuries. Then we need to leave immediately," she stated, walking forward and disappearing into the trees.

Tsubasu watched her go and shook his head in disappointment.

_You get angry about Sasuke's wrongdoings when even you yourself are clouded by the darkness Orochimaru has placed within your own heart, _he thought to himself as he stood up, grabbed his blades, and followed her.


	19. Not Just an Illusion

Sasuke continued to walk down the path towards Konoha. His eyes were shut in anger and irritation while his fists were coiled in his pockets. His feet dragged across the dirt and crunched the leaves beneath him. His eyes were shut in resentment as his thoughts continued to fill with nothing except agitation for the pink-haired girl.

How could she of all people? The entire time they had been together, she was ungrateful to him. He risked his life several times to save her and what did he get back in return? A slap in the face, a cold shoulder, or a glare. No matter how many times he tried to help her, he was pushed aside as if he didn't even matter. She was so cold, stubborn, and ignorant. She constantly tries to place everything on top of her shoulders and handle everything herself, but she can't. No matter how much she tries, she's going to need other people to be there for her and assist her.

He continued to ignore how familiar this all seemed.

The curse mark popped into his mind, causing him to growl. How could something like this have happened? Out of all the people in the world, why did it have to be her? Why when he was gone? He wasn't sure if he was angrier at himself for not making sure the snake-bastard was dead or angrier at Naruto for not protecting her in her time of need.

Maybe that was the problem, maybe he didn't believe in her enough? She was a lot stronger, he could admit that. They were on even terms when it came to basic ninjutsus and taijutsu. However, when it truly came down to it, he couldn't get the twelve year-old Sakura Haruno out of his head. He still felt as though he needed to jump in and protect her…or maybe he just liked doing it.

_He slowly placed his hand on top of hers, entangling their fingers together. She looked down, astonished by his sudden actions. Heat quickly rose to her face as she glanced back up at him, watching him as he began to lean forward towards her face. She was frozen in place – not sure what to do. She just sat there, watching him as he leaned down closer and closer to her lips._

_Sakura instantly coughed, looking in the other direction to force his attempted kiss to a halt. _

"_It's, uhm, getting late," she started off, rising to her feet. "We have to leave early in the morning – I better get some sleep," she stated, not letting him interject anything before she darted off towards the cabin._

He shook his head, trying to rid the memory of rejection. For years she chased after him like a dog, and when he finally wants to return those feelings, she rejects him. Why? Had Orochimaru really gotten in between them?

Sasuke scoffed when thinking about that snake. He always found a way to destroy everything. Sasuke had finally realized that he loves Sakura and Orochimaru is once again getting in the middle of his plans.

He stopped in his tracks. Did he just say he loved her? Sakura's smiling face instantly popped into his head. She's beautiful, smart, talented, courageous, independent, determined, and so much more. She's not the same girl she was when they were genin. And, that's exactly why Sakura didn't have those feelings for him anymore; she didn't need him like she did when they were younger.

"_Because I'm not the same girl you left behind, Sasuke!" she started off, actually calling him by his first name. "I'm not that pathetic, weak, little girl you left behind five years ago!" She ripped her arm from his hold and pushed her index finger into his chest. "I've grown, Sasuke, and I don't need to be protected by you anymore! So get out of my life!"_

She had made that very clear. She obviously didn't need him anymore, so, good riddance.

A sudden sharp pain struck Sasuke in his eyes.

He gasped and his knees seemed to buckle underneath him. His strength quickly vanished as he fell on the ground, holding on to his eyes as tightly as he could. As if it would rid the pain, he clawed at them constantly.

Suddenly, his Mangekyo disappeared as quickly as it appeared.

His mouth had become relatively parched as a feeling of irritation and dryness had itched in the back of his throat, causing him to physically reach up to his neck and grip it. He coughed, a cough escaping his lips as his fingers clawed down his Adam's apple, as if the sudden discomfort would suddenly vanish. His eyes squinted followed by a set of continuous blinks to rid the blotches that had covered every inch of his vision. The throbbing of the pain, which had nearly subsided, seemed to linger like a bad aftertaste. Although the height of the pain was over, there seemed to be a numbness that had covered his body as a migraine began to form across his forehead.

He resumed the sitting position on his knees, staring at the ground. Sweat had already begun to trickle down his forehead as he seemed unable to catch his breath. His lips, parted slightly agape, quivered, whether it was the pain or the suddenness of its occurrence. One, last cough had escaped his throat as he tried to spit up anything that lingered behind. He reached upward, the back of his hand sliding across his lips to wipe away the residue.

He looked around him while taking quick, short breaths, unable to locate the source of his random pain. He then looked back at the ground and blinked a few times, trying to stop himself from throwing up.

What just happened?

"Sasuke," he heard from in front of him. Sasuke quickly snapped his head upward.

His brother stood before him.

"Itachi," Sasuke rasped lowly. His eyes were widened, unable to grasp the scene in front of him. Itachi nodded softly in affirmation.

"I'm sorry for that," he began. "The pain is a side effect of my jutsu."

For the next few moments, Sasuke just stared at his brother with a surprised expression. His brother, who had died years ago, was standing before him, seemingly alive and well.

It was then that Sasuke was able to get a closer look.

Itachi's body began to shift in abstract motions, the area behind him being clearly visible through his transparent figure. A soft, yet audible gasp was heard from the younger brother's lips.

"How? What?" he stuttered. Sasuke's mind was filled with so many questions, but he had no idea where to begin. Itachi continued to stare down at him with a bland, stoic expression.

"I gave you my eyes," Itachi proclaimed. "With enough strength, I can still cast a genjutsu from the other side," he explained. Sasuke gawked at him in shock. He slowly rose to his feet, not breaking the eye contact he held with his brother as if he would disappear.

"Why are you here?" he stuttered. Itachi did not hesitate to answer.

"You're making a huge mistake," he responded. Sasuke's eyebrow rose.

"About what?" he asked. Itachi sighed, as if the answer was obvious.

"If you don't turn back, Sakura will be gone forever." Sasuke seemed to forget to breathe.

"Wh-What?" he stuttered once again. "Orochimaru will take her body?!" he yelled in desperation. Itachi's stoic look never deceased.

"Things are not what they seem, little brother," Itachi stated, causing Sasuke to look at him with a dumbfounded expression.

"What do you mean? What's going to happen to her?" he pressed.

Then, Itachi began unfolding the secrets behind the enemy. One by one, the hidden plans were revealed to him, and the strings began to connect together.

Sasuke stared at him with astonishment, confusion, and anger. When Itachi had finally finished, Sasuke looked down as his fists tightened in fury.

"It all makes sense now," Sasuke whispered. Itachi nodded before giving one more piece of advice.

"You better be quick," he started off. "Before they get to you." Itachi's genjutsu slowly started to fade away. Sasuke's angered expression was instantly replaced with a desperate one.

"Wait! Itachi!" Sasuke yelled while reaching out to him. "What do I need to do?" he asked. For the first time since before the massacre, Sasuke saw a caring look in Itachi's eyes.

"You need to never give up on the ones you love," he finished. Sasuke stared back with a loving, longing look before he finally disappeared, with nothing left but Sasuke and the soothing wind around him. After a couple moments of silence, Sasuke stared at the place that Itachi once was. Everything began to slowly process in his mind.

"I have to go save her," he began. He turned around and then instantly remembered the other piece of advice Itachi gave.

Before who came?

Before Sasuke could turn around, a metal chain wrapped around his entire body. An electrical charge traveled through the metal and electrocuted him.

He yelled in pain and fell to the ground on his side. He tried to move his body, but he was temporarily paralyzed from the shock.

His eyes, which were half open, roamed upward, and they came in contact with ANBU masks that stared back down at him.

"You three, bring him back to Konoha. The rest of you," the captain said as he turned to the other members of his squad. "Come with me; we're going after the girl," he finished.

"Hai!" they all responded. Two ANBU members chained his wrists behind him and sluggishly picked him up. Sasuke's head hung low, and he gazed off in the direction that Sakura was headed.

"N-No," he whispered too low for the ninjas to here.

Before he fell unconscious, Sasuke imagined Sakura's retreating back.

"Sakura…"

* * *

The wind softly blew through Sakura's hair as she continued to stare into the distance. The grip she held on the rail of the boat tightened. Her gaze, which held a blank look, remained on the depleting land as the boat continued onward.

"Sakura-chan?" Ryuu asked. She turned back, gazing into his silver eyes that were filled with worry and compassion. "I-I wanted to talk to you," he began nervously.

"What is it?" she asked stoically. He bit his lip anxiously, as if he was instantly regretting this decision.

"Sakura-chan, I know things have been tough, but," he started off. "I just wanted to let you know that I'll always be here when you need me. I-I really care about you," he stated. She stared at him for a few seconds, almost not completely knowing what to say. However, she managed to let a small smile consume her face.

"Thank you, Ryuu. That means a lot to me," she replied before she turned around and looked back at the open sea. Ryuu coughed uneasily, clearly not done with his speech.

"S-Sakura-chan, I also wanted to tell you that…that," he took a deep breath, preparing for what he was about to say next. "I love you, Sakura-chan."

Sakura's eyes instantly widened as she stared in front of her. Ryuu stayed quiet, waiting for her to respond. After thinking to herself for a few seconds, she replied to him.

"Ryuu, I'm sorry but," she started off, staring sadly into the waves crashing beneath the boat. "I just don't feel the same way," she ended. Ryuu looked at her back sadly before looking down at the ground.

"O-Oh, all right, Sakura-chan. I understand," he responded dejectedly. Without another word being said, he walked away towards the front of the ship.

Sakura looked back, staring at his retreating back with a sigh. She didn't want to hurt him, she really didn't, but she could not give him the happiness he deserved. A certain Uchiha immediately popped into her mind.

Or, maybe that wasn't it at all.

Sakura turned back towards the shore and stared at it for a few seconds, leaning back on the rail and staring at the land that seemed miles and miles away. As the boat kept sailing over the waters, it felt as though she was getting farther and farther away from returning to her old life.

_What have I done? _she thought before turned back to the boat and aided Tsubasu with the sail.


	20. A Secret Revealed

"Nghh," Sasuke groaned. His eyes, with difficulty, slowly began to open. The first thing he saw were peering eyes that seemed to stare at his soul.

They seemed to move past him, yet they didn't look like they were walking at all.

It was then that he felt the gravel scrape against his knees. In actuality, he was the one moving.

He tried to move his wrists, but they were restrained behind his back. He then realized that the eyes that were staring at him were the eyes of civilians.

Konoha's civilians.

Once realization hit him, he began thrashing his arms in any means of escape. The ANBU's grip tightened, but it did nothing to stop him.

"Mate!" he began. "Let me go! You don't understand!" he yelled frantically.

"You can explain back at Tsunade's office," the ANBU at the right replied.

"I don't have time for that!" Sasuke shouted.

"Quiet!" Sasuke heard behind him before he was suddenly struck in the back of the neck.

He gasped in pain once more before his vision became blurry. Time seemed to quickly go by as he gazed at blurry shapes and colors. By the time his sight repaired, he was being dragged into Tsunade's office and tossed forward on the floor.

He jerked his head upward, seeing Tsunade, Naruto, Neji, Kiba, Shikamaru, and Kakashi all staring back at him. Sasuke saw different emotions running through their eyes – anger, sadness, confusion, and betrayal.

* * *

The four ninjas hid within the trees of the forest, masking their chakra as a team of Sound Ninjas ran past their location. Tsubasu waited a few seconds before waving the other three towards his location. They quickly came over, kneeling behind some bushes and peeking through the leaves. They stayed there quietly for a few moments before they made their way over to the bottom of the high cliff.

"There's a genjutsu here," Ryuu stated. Sakura closed her eyes, trying to sense the chakra.

"I feel it too," she said as they both looked at a crack in the stone. They both formed the tiger hand sign while pumping chakra throughout their system.

"Kai!" they said, and the genjutsu was easily disabled. The stone wall instantly vanished, revealing a staircase in its place.

"Let's go," Tsubasu stated while walking forward. They all nodded and quickly made their way down the stairs.

* * *

"Hokage-sama –" Sasuke began.

"Shut it!" she spat as her glare intensified. "You were trusted to bring Sakura home, but instead, you ended up betraying us once again," she lectured. Sasuke looked around to Naruto, trying to let him know what happened.

"Naruto –"

"How could you?" he said with a raspy voice.

He then stepped forward as anger washed over him. He held his fist in the air, ready to strike with a punch. However, he was instantly restrained by Neji and Kiba.

"You were supposed to bring Sakura-chan back – to protect her!" he yelled out. Sasuke almost hesitated by Naruto's sheer anger and sadness, but he kept trying to explain.

"Look, just listen to me –"

* * *

"Stop," Tsubasu stated while putting his arm in front of his comrades. They peered down the hallway they were walking down, hearing only a silence.

"What?" Daichi questioned as he looked over at him. Tsubasu stood there quietly for a few moments before replying.

"Something's off –"

An instant, sharp sound echoed throughout the hallway, causing them to cover their ears in pain. Their vision instantly blurred, and they were unable to sense anything around them.

Sakura turned to her side, seeing Tsubasu being struck down by a ninja. She reached out to him, but her balance was knocked off. She fell to the ground with a 'thud.'

She then gazed up, seeing her other two comrades, Ryuu and Daichi, being bashed down as well. They were unmoving and Sakura began to wheeze for air.

"N-No!" she breathed out. A ninja was then standing above her with a sinister smile.

"Goodnight," he said before he kicked her in the head and knocked her unconscious.

* * *

"Where is Sakura's current location?" Tsunade asked the ANBU. Their expressions were unseen by those around them.

"The rest of the team should be reaching her as we speak, Hokage-sama," he stated. Sasuke looked back and forth between them.

"Tsunade-sa-"

"-ama. Do you want us to meet up with the ANBU squad to assist them? They might need medical assistance," Shikamaru interrupted. Neji turned and engaged into the conversation.

"Listen to me!" Sasuke yelled out.

* * *

"W-Wha?" Sakura whispered groggily as she began to wake up. Her instant reaction was to move her hands, but they were tied down. She looked, seeing her wrists bore by rope to the arm of the chair. She gasped lowly. What happened?

"Sakura!" she heard Tsubasu yell. She looked backwards, seeing her three teammates being held in separate cages by shackles. Attached to those shackles were electronic devices. "You have to get out of here!" he continued. "Orochimaru, he's –"

He was interrupted when the device electrocuted him, causing him to yell in agony. Her eyes widened in panic.

"Tsubasu!"

* * *

"Tsunade-baa-chan! Let me go with them!" Naruto voted.

"We need to strategize a good team –"

"Sakura last location was –"

Sasuke glared at the ground as he began boiling with anger. His hands tightened into fists behind him and he took in a deep breath.

"Everyone, shut up!" he screamed from the top of his lungs. The room finally filled with silence as their eyes focused on him.

"Sasuke, you have no room to talk –"

"Sakura's in trouble."

* * *

A laugh echoed throughout the entire corridor. Her head snapped forward as she glared up in anger.

"Orochimaru! Show yourself, you coward!" she yelled.

"Have you figured it out yet, Sakura-san?" he asked her, as if ignoring her command. She stopped suddenly, unaware of what he meant. "And here I thought you were smarter than this," he continued. She squinted her eyes, as if it would help her see the whole picture.

"What do you mean?" she asked hesitantly.

* * *

"Her mission. She's going after –" Sasuke was once again interrupted.

"Orochimaru; we know," Kakashi cut off. Sasuke continued.

"No, it's not Orochimaru!"

The shadow, followed by its figure, stepped forward in front of her eyes.

"Then, who?"

"It's-"

* * *

"Kabuto…?" Sakura asked confusingly. "What's going on? Where's Orochimaru?" she asked, looking around everywhere. He laughed.

"Has revenge really clouded your judgment that much?" he started off. "You really just don't get it, do you?" she stared at him in disbelief.

"What do you mean?" Kabuto grabbed his hood and pulled it off of his head, revealing his features. His face was covered in scales and his old, obsidian eyes had changed to a golden color that resembled that of a snake's. He then spoke, and his voice was mixed with that of Orochimaru's in a demonic tone.

"I am Orochimaru!"


	21. Power Unleashed

"_Kabuto…?" Sakura asked confusingly. "What's going on? Where's Orochimaru?" she asked, looking around everywhere. He laughed. _

"_Has revenge really clouded your judgment that much?" he started off. "You really just don't get it, do you?" she stared at him in disbelief. _

"_What do you mean?" Kabuto grabbed his hood and pulled it off of his head, revealing his features. His face was covered in scales and his old, obsidian eyes had changed to a golden color that resembled that of a snake's. He then spoke; and his voice was mixed with that of Orochimaru's in a demonic tone._

"_I am Orochimaru!"_

"I-I don't understand," Sakura stuttered.

"All right, well if I have to explain it I guess I will," he started off.

He began to slowly pace around the room as his long, slithering tail dragged behind him.

"Years ago, after Sasuke killed Orochimaru and left to seek revenge on his brother, I had realized that Orochimaru wasn't as great as he proclaimed," he began to explain with a smirk on his face.

Team Tsuki continued to stare at him with discernment.

"I remember thinking to myself: What if I could pass my master? What if I could be my master?"

Sakura's breath got caught in her throat as he continued.

"So, I took Orochimaru's remains and integrated them into my body, and I became this," he said while pointing down at his body. Everyone remained silent.

"Wait, if Orochimaru was always dead, how did we not notice?" Sakura started to ask. "I saw him for myself." Kabuto smiled.

"I placed a genjutsu over the entire domain before anyone ever entered," he began. "You were too weak and beaten to even notice." Tsubasu growled.

"That's why you always took our chakra away," Tsubasu stated lowly in realization, remembering back to all of the times that they deprived them of most of their chakra. Kabuto looked his way with a smirk.

"You were always a prodigy, Yotsuki," he stated. Ryuu looked down sadly.

"I never even noticed," the genjutsu master muttered to himself. Kabuto looked back at Sakura.

"Having Orochimaru's powers was great in the beginning, however, because of his wretched spirit, he's slowly…taking over," he stated angrily to himself.

Sakura stared up at him. Kabuto suddenly chuckled.

"Then I asked myself, how can I stop this from happening? How can I attain the immortality that Orochimaru was striving for?" he asked rhetorically. "It was then that I found my answer," he stated before he stopped and faced Sakura. "Jinshin Shuuzen no Jutsu."

"What is that?" Sakura asked subconsciously. Kabuto smiled.

"I'm so glad you asked," he began. "Jinshin Shuuzen no Jutsu is a kinjutsu that allows the user to repair their own body and keep it intact for hundreds of years!" She stared at him with a dumbfound expression.

"How is that possible?" she asked. Kabuto began to chuckle again out of his own amusement.

"Using chakra, I will be able to transform and manipulate my cells into integrating with my organs and tissues." He readjusted his glasses. "So, I will be able to keep my body healthy forever." Sakura scoffed at him.

"There's no way you will be able to control a jutsu like that," Sakura stated.

Kabuto walked towards her and smirked widely at her.

"No, but you can," he indicated mischievously.

Everyone's eyes widened.

"That's why you captured me," Sakura stranded off while looking down at the ground.

"Ding dong! We have a winner," Kabuto said. "That stupid Orochimaru – going after the Uchiha for all those years," he said to himself.

She began to see the insanity in his eyes.

"He approached things all wrong. What I'm going to achieve is so much greater than what he strove for! Once I take your body, I will go after the Uchiha and steal his eyes," he spat towards her. Her eyes widened.

"No." He laughed, enjoying the fear that was coursing through her.

"You won't have to worry about that anymore," he began before he grabbed her chin and yanked it so she was looking at him. "Because soon, your beautiful body will be mine," he spat. She growled up at him.

"Don't touch her!" Ryuu yelled. They both looked back, seeing his intensified glare.

"Ryuu," Sakura whispered sadly. Kabuto smirked and straightened up his posture while placing his hands behind his back.

"What could you possibly do?" Kabuto slyly asked. Ryuu continued to glare at him, unfazed by the situation he was currently in.

"I'll kill you!" he yelled from the top of his lungs. Daichi and Tsubasu glared and snarled at Kabuto.

"I'm sorry, I don't think I understood you quite right," he began while placing one hand behind his ear, as if it would aid his hearing. "You'll do what exactly? Hmm? You're not going to do much while you're tied up in a cage!" Kabuto spat before stretching out his other arm and pressing the button on the remote that was in his hand. Electricity ran up the chain and shocked him, causing him to scream. Sakura's eyes widened.

"Stop!" she yelled, trying to get out of the chains that held her down to the chair. Kabuto chuckled.

"Make me," he demanded before he pressed down on the other button. Tsubasu and Daichi were shocked as well as their screams join in unison with Ryuu's.

After the three boys were electrocuted, they hunched over in pain, trying to catch their breath. Sakura's head was hung low with her bangs covering her eyes. Kabuto made his way in front of Sakura, about fifty feet in front of her, and smiled mischievously.

"Now, let's begin, shall we?" he asked pretentiously.

His assistants began to place candles in a circular formation around the both of them. Kabuto nodded towards them, initiating the beginning of the ceremony. Kabuto began to perform a long line of hand signs.

Once he had finished, a circular pattern illuminated around them in a bright, purple color. The other ninjas performed the same hand signs and the color grew brighter and brighter. All of their chakra energies began to combine as a sudden wind blew throughout the corridor. Tsubasu, Daichi, and Ryuu looked up to see Sakura not moving an inch.

"Sakura! Move! Do something!" Ryuu yelled. Daichi gritted his teeth together.

"Damn it," he growled. Kabuto sighed, as his stress began to fade.

"Finally, the day I have been waiting for," he said. The jutsu was now prepared to begin. She still hadn't moved an inch as Kabuto began to walk over to her.

"S-Sakura, no," Ryuu whispered to himself with tears forming in his eyes. Kabuto stopped directly in front of her with his arm outreached towards her face.

"You're mine."

Suddenly, a burst of chakra emitted from Sakura's body. Her sudden burst of chakra mixed with the chakra around her and everyone flew backwards, slamming into the wall.

"Guh!" Kabuto screamed out in pain as he slid down the wall. Sakura yanked her wrists upward, and the chains shattered into pieces. Everyone stared at her in astonishment as she slowly began to stand to her feet. Tsubasu's eyes widened.

"Oh no," he muttered.

"What's going on?" Daichi asked, trying to yell over the roaring winds. Tsubasu continued to stare as his eyes were trapped on her back.

"The curse mark."


	22. Waking Nightmare

Sasuke sped forward, looking at every single tree, every single bush that surrounded him as he rushed through the forest. The team behind him was trying to keep up as Sasuke continued to jump from branch to branch as fast as he could with only one pink-haired girl on his mind. Her retreating back with purple chakra swirling around her body impeached itself into his mind.

How could he have done this, been so stupid? Itachi had warned him about the ANBU, but he hesitated; he hesitated long enough to be captured. If he would have just turned around and noticed the attack, then Sakura might be safe right now. But, he didn't listen, and now he's losing all of his energy to reach the girl of his dreams that might already be taken over by the devil's apprentice.

Sasuke shook his head, trying to get rid of all the pessimistic thoughts. He had to be positive, to look towards the future. He still has a chance of saving her and thinking of the worst isn't going to help him. If he loves Sakura and truly wants to save her, then he needs to let his determination control his thoughts.

It was then that everything quickly began racing through Sasuke's mind: her frail body lying in a hospital bed, the curling of her form as she scrunched up in pain form the mark, the agonizing screams that seemed to echo through his head; it gave him a reason to never rest, to never stop running. A fire was instantly set a flame, and he pushed himself even harder to race through the trees.

Sasuke suddenly stopped in his tracks, looking down at the ground beneath him. It all looked familiar; he had passed this place earlier. His eyes scanned the ground until it came in contact with burnt grass. This is where he was captured by the ANBU.

"Which way?" Kakashi asked when he suddenly stopped on a branch. Sasuke continued ahead with his Sharingan blazing.

"This way," he replied as they continued to follow him. Naruto stood in the back with his head hung low. He was feeling guilty for yelling at Sasuke the way he did. Sasuke did protect Sakura with everything he had, and he was treated like shit for it. Naruto looked back up, gazing at Sasuke's retreating back. He was running as fast as he could to reach her, to save her in her time of need.

Where would they be if Naruto had walked Sakura into her home that night? Would they still be running through these trees in attempts of saving her? Would they be Team 7 again? Naruto bit his lip, trying to stop the tears from forming in his eyes. How did this even happen? Why? Questions were still lingering deeply within Naruto's mind.

With that, he quickly caught up to Sasuke, jumping with him by his side. He was feeling so many emotions that he didn't even know which one was the strongest.

"Sasuke," Naruto started off. Sasuke looked towards him. His head was hanging low in shame. "Is it true?" he continued. "Does she really have the curse mark?" Sasuke almost sighed at his somberly tone before he looked forward.

"Yes, I've seen it for myself," he replied. Naruto bit his lip.

"This is all my fault," he stated. "If I was more aware of my surroundings, she would have never been taken in the first place," he muttered lowly. Sasuke looked over at him with a firm expression.

"You can't blame yourself for this, Naruto," he began. The blonde-haired boy looked at him in surprise. "You would have never let her get taken if you would have known. Besides, Sakura didn't even feel their presence until she entered her home and she's great at sensing chakra."

He looked forward once more, hoping that Sakura would just magically appear in front of them.

"You can't focus on the past; you need to concentrate on the future – concentrate on saving her," he finished. Naruto, who was completely flabbergasted, nodded in agreement. His newfound confidence completely covered his shame.

"You're right, teme! We're going to rescue Sakura-chan, no matter what it takes!" he shouted. Sasuke smirked in response. The old Naruto was back.

"That's my dobe."

"What's that?!" Ino shouted. They all looked forward, seeing a group of ANBU lying on the ground. The team jumped down, observing the area. A small fire was ignited, burning down several trees, several trees were either knocked down or cut down, dead bodies were scattered around the area, and blood had consumed almost everything. Most of the bodies surrounding the area were that of an ANBU squad.

A fight had occurred and Konoha had clearly lost.

Hinata knelt down, checking a pulse of a ninja. After a few seconds, she shook her head in sadness.

"Th-They're all dead," she stuttered as she stared down at the captain. Naruto glared intensely while curling his fingers into a fist.

"Sound Ninja," Sasuke observed from the markings on the trees. They attacked using sound waves; the ANBU didn't even stand a chance. Kakashi looked around, grabbing his teammates' attention.

"We need to get to Sakura, now," he stated. The group immediately disappeared from their place, heading east towards the sea as quickly as they could.

* * *

The curse mark's chakra continued to radiate off of Sakura's body. Her hair bristled in the wind caused by her brand-new energy. Sakura, as if frozen in place, hadn't moved a muscle since she stood up from the clutches of the chains behind her. Everyone sat there in silence as they stared at the girl in front of them.

_How can this happen? _Kabuto thought to himself. _We had already begun the formation, but her chakra seemed to completely counteract the continuation of the jutsu._

"What's wrong?" Sakura asked in a demonic voice. Kabuto's eyes widened slightly. She suddenly looked up and he was able to get a better look at her.

The curse mark had already full covered her body, and one of her irises had turned golden while the sclera had turned completely black.

"Cat got your tongue?"

Kabuto immediately replaced his surprised expression with a smirk. He then stood up, readjusting his cracked glasses.

"I'm impressed; no one's ever gotten to the best of me like that," he stated. "But, it won't happen again!" he shouted as his hand flung forward followed by five snakes that emitted from his sleeve. The chakra around her hands and forearms grew. Without any hand signs, she initiated her chakra scalpel as the chakra engulfed her fists.

The snakes reached out for her, but she gracefully maneuvered her way around them. She chopped her arm to the side, easily slicing the snakes in half. Her speed began to dramatically increase as she suddenly disappeared from place.

Kabuto's eyes widened and he spun his head to the sides in search of her. Feeling her strong presence, he looked up, seeing her falling towards him like a rocket. He jumped backwards as her chakra-filled fist just happened to barely graze his face. He looked at her hands, noticing one arm was using the chakra scalpel while the other was pumping chakra around it for added strength.

_How is she able to direct two different jutsus at one time?!_

She didn't give him a chance to escape; she jumped towards him, throwing out her attacks in an incredible speed. Kabuto was able to dodge her attacks by sensing which direction her chakra was headed towards. However, her chakra got too close to him, and his balance was immediately thrown off. He looked forward while stumbling backwards, seeing nothing but her chakra-filled fist heading for his face.

"Kuso!"

A huge explosion was heard and the entire lair shook. Smoke covered the entire area, forcing the three boys to close their eyes.

"Ngh!" Ryuu gasped unexpectedly. After the smoke had cleared, they all looked up, trying to see if her attack landed.

"Did she get 'em?!" Daichi asked. They let the question hang in silence as Kabuto's body was out of their sight. Sakura straightened her posture, looking around for the snake.

"Tch," she spat. He had escaped at the last minute through the wall using his attack prevention technique. But, where did he go?

"Chakura no Mesu!" he shouted as he came down from directly above, attempting to slice through her arm. She avoided his attack, pushing off of the wall to perform a horizontal spin before sliding back against the ground and putting distance between her and her adversary.

"Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu!" he shouted. The water particles from the oxygen in the air began to bond together to form a water dragon five times the size of a normal one. Kabuto smirked at his achievement and he slammed down his hand towards the ground, controlling the movements of the beast.

The dragon rushed forward at her at an unbelievable speed. Sakura's chakra continued to grow, and her chakra scalpel grew into large arm blade that engulfed her entire arm. She raised that arm in the air as the wind around her increased in speed. She built up her attack before she struck down the area in front of her vertically followed by a loud battle cry.

"Ahhh!" she screamed as she unleashed her chakra. The chakra rushed forward from her strike and took the shape of a moon crescent. Once colliding with the dragon, it sliced directly through the linked water particles and caused them to separate. The water droplets fell to the floor like rain throughout the corridor. Kabuto performed another hand sign.

"Sen'ei Tajashu!" Kabuto shouted as snakes were released from his sleeves once more. However, this time, hundreds of snakes seemed to reach out to her.

She instantly began flipping backwards, trying to avoid their reach. When there was no space left, her back came in contact with the wall. A snake snapped at her neck, but she moved her head to the side and sliced through its throat.

She continued to jump around to avoid the reptiles. She broke their jaws, sliced through them, and any other means of escape. Once destroyed, they immediately disappeared in a puff of smoke. With one snake remaining, she grabbed it by the neck and yanked it as hard as she could, receiving a gasp from Kabuto. It caught on his sleeve and he was forced off of his feet.

"Ngh!" he yelled before he was suddenly pulled by her brute first. She swung him around and slammed him into the wall, creating another large explosion.

She tightened her grip on the snake's throat and crushed it, causing it to fall on the ground, immobile. Sakura breathed heavily, staring at Kabuto as he stood up without a problem.

"In'yu Shōmetsu," he said as his wound was healing. Yin Healing Would Technique. He anticipated where he was going to get hurt and began to pre-heal the attack. Because of his strategy, he didn't take a large hit.

Sakura growled in anger, causing Kabuto to laugh.

"Do you really think you're going to win against me? I gave you that mark!" he yelled with a menacing look on his face. Sakura's fingers curled in anger as her chakra aura became heavier. Tsubasu's eyes widened.

"Sakura! Control your anger!" he began, staring at her as her chakra became more colored and visible. "You're falling straight into his trap!"

"Shut up," she snarled, not breaking eye contact with the snake in front of her. "I'm going to kill him, no matter what it takes."

Suddenly, her form became to drastically change. Her light, porcelain skin became darker and her hair began to grow at a rapid speed until it stopped just below her waist. It seemed to defy gravity as it stuck out in random places and turned from a soft, pink color to a bright, red color. Her finger and toenails grew into long, black claws that ripped through the gauze wrapped around her fingers and the boots covering her feet.

Black streaks marked her face, arms, legs, and stomach, representing the lines of a tiger. However, these streaks extended out of her skin, becoming short blades that ripped through her clothes. A tiger's tail grew out of her rear, growing out until it almost came in contact with the ground. Both of her irises were now a golden color, also resembling a cat, while both of the sclera had turned completely black. She smirked wildly, showing off her pointed, feline teeth.

Kabuto couldn't help but smirk back.

"That's right, Sakura-san," he whispered to himself as he began to transform into his full snake form that stood over thirty feet high. "Use all of your power to defeat me; it's the only way," he demanded as his voice turned more demonic, enticing her.

She crouched on all fours as her chakra grew once more, surrounding the entire area around her. As the chakra turned a brighter purple, the chakra became more dangerous. Just at the touch of her power, the walls were sliced with scratches remaining in its path. Anything within its grasp was cut down.

"_No matter what," Tsubasu began, staring at his three teammates around him. "We will not resort to the curse mark. It's a mark that Orochimaru placed on us and we won't give him the pleasure of using his own power. Deal?" he asked, watching them for their reactions. Daichi and Ryuu nodded. _

"_Psh, I don't need that stupid mark anyway," he began with a smirk of triumph. "I'm way stronger without it," he stated as he placed his hand in the middle, as if starting some sort of hand shake on the subject. _

_Tsubasu followed, placing his hand in the middle of the group. Ryuu smiled, automatically placing in his hand after them. They then turned to the female of the group. Uncertainty spread across her face._

"_But, what if we really need it?" she started off with a frown. "I mean, I know it's evil, but it's also got a lot of power that could come in handy." Tsubasu glared upon the suggestion. _

"_No matter what, we will not use these powers; it's what Orochimaru wants," he initiated. Sakura sighed in defeat, placing her hand in the middle. _

"_Deal."_

Tsubasu tightened his hold on the metal bars in between him and his comrade as he continued to stare at Kabuto's smirking face.

_Sakura, you're falling right into a trap. _

"You're going to die today, Kabuto," she said as her voice was intermixed with that of a demon. Kabuto cackled.

"Then prove it to me."

With that, they both raced towards each other at tremendous speeds. They became engulfed in an intense hand-to-hand combat.

Kabuto used his tail as a great advantage, swinging it around his body in attempts of slicing her down. However, the second stage of her curse mark caused her body to become more quick and fluent. She gracefully jumped around his assaults as if she wasn't even coming in contact with the ground. The blades that stuck out of her body aided with her defensive movements as they deflected anything that was thrown at her.

When on the offensive, she pumped chakra into her claws and tried to graze his skin, but his movements were just as quick. They both jumped back when they were unsuccessful in their offensives.

"Kanashibari no Jutsu!" Sakura shouted after performing a hand sign. Kabuto had instantly stumbled back, his body stuck to the pole behind him. He whipped his tail around in an effort to escape the invisible steel robes that held him down. Quickly, Sakura performed another line of hand signs: Tiger, ox, dog, rabbit, and snake. A sudden, large gust of wind shot out towards Kabuto. Everything within Sakura's line of sight was instantly blown down. It reached Kabuto, and he disappeared, mud forming at the base of the pole within his place.

_Mud clone. _

Sakura looked to her side, seeing Kabuto attempting bite her with his vicious fangs. However, she flipped backwards gracefully, dodging his assault. She held out her arm horizontally as the sleeve of her jacket began to move.

"Sen'eijashu!" she yelled as snakes exited from her sleeve, reaching out to strangle Kabuto. However, he just snapped at them, biting off their heads.

"Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu!" Kabuto yelled. The water particles from the oxygen in the air began to once again bond together to form a wall of water several dozen meters high. The streams of water cascaded downward like a waterfall.

Sakura, however, ran towards it on all fours in inconceivable haste. She jumped in the air and spun like a drill towards the body of water as her chakra continued to rotate around her body. Once she came in contact with the water, her chakra canceled out the attack and it once again began to rain.

Sakura aimed her body towards Kabuto, which caused him to jump backwards to avoid the attack. She slammed into the ground, creating another explosion.

The smoke that covered the area was heavy; nothing could be seen through the thickness. Sakura sniffed, tracing the whereabouts of Kabuto. He was lingering within the shadows, ready to strike at any given moment.

_This is my chance! _she thought to herself as she quickly and quietly raced through the smoke.

A splatter was heard from within. Daichi, Tsubasu, and Ryuu were on the edge of their seats as they tried desperately to see within the white smoke. No movements or sounds were heard; only a lingering silence.

"Sakura-chan?!" Ryuu yelled, trying to get her attention. However, she didn't respond. They stood there, waiting for the smoke to clear.

However, after almost a full minute of silence, it finally cleared, revealing Sakura's entire forearm embedded through Kabuto's chest. Her teammates stared up in bewilderment as Kabuto stood there, seemingly lifeless. Sakura stood there, just as lifeless, but from shock.

"I-I won," she stated, not moving an inch. A smile quickly consumed her face. "I won!" she yelled triumphantly. Her teammates soon joined her success, but were immediately cut off by Kabuto's chortle.

He jerked his head upward, giving her an insane smile. His torso turned into a liquefied state and her attack became invalid. Her eyes widened upon his next words.

"Kusanagi no Tsurugi!" he yelled. She stared at him, waiting for an attack to happen. But, his body stayed completely still. The next thing she heard were the screams of her comrades.

"Sakura! Move!" Tsubasu yelled. Before she could react, she felt a sharp pain in her stomach. She gasped in agony before she slowly looked down, seeing the source. A blade was stuck all the way through her body.

"SAKURA-CHAN!" Ryuu screamed at the top of his lungs.

Tsubasu and Daichi stared in fear, unaware of what to do. Sakura's legs began to wobble beneath her and her strength was slowly fading. She looked back up at Kabuto in confusion and fear.

"H-How?" she asked, wondering where the sudden blade appeared from. Kabuto's smirk never disappeared from his face.

"I suppose you didn't notice the only snake that didn't disappear out of the bunch that you destroyed," he said, referring to before. Her eyes widened from the memory.

_With one snake remaining, she grabbed it by the neck and yanked it as hard as she could, receiving a gasp from Kabuto. It caught on his sleeve and he was forced off of his feet._

"_Ngh!" he yelled before he was suddenly pulled by her brute first. She swung him around and slammed him into the wall, creating another large explosion. She tightened her grip on the snake's throat and crushed it, causing it to fall on the ground; immobile._

"Do you know why it was caught?" he cackled as the blade began to turn in her stomach, causing her to hunch over in pain.

She spat out blood that spattered on the ground, followed by a coughing riot. He continued.

"It was my blade; and you fell directly in my trap," he smirked while slithering up to her until they were centimeters apart.

He stroked her cheek with his tail as he smiled devilishly at her before he wrapped his tail around the hilt behind her.

"Thank you for the easiness," he finished, pulling the blade out of her stomach. She screamed in pain and began coughing again uncontrollably, unable to move from where she stood. He backed up, spun around, whipped her in the stomach with his tail. Her eyes widened and she flew back into the wall behind her, creating another huge explosion. Her comrades screamed for her.

"Sakura!" Tsubasu yelled, attempting to once again pull off the metal bars of the cage. However, the Sound Ninja had taken all of their weapons and chakra; they were completely useless.

"SSSSSSakura-ssssan! You excccite me to no end!" Kabuto shouted with a cackle. After a few seconds, the smoke completely cleared.

Sakura heaved heavily, trying to regain the breath she had previously lost. She coughed up blood as a stream ran down her chin and onto the floor beneath her. She clutched onto her stomach in pain, realizing he had just shattered her rib cage.

"K-Kuso," Sakura spat, coughing up some more blood.

Ryuu gripped the bars of the cell, trying to break them with all of his might.

"Sakura! No!" he screamed in terror. Daichi and Tsubasu continued to attempt to do the same, but the bars would not budge an inch.

Sakura looked up towards Kabuto to see that he was slowly slithering his way towards her. As if everything around her seemed to vanish except her and her pursuer, her heart began to accelerate.

Lub-dub.

The scales on his tail slid across the floor, creating an echo throughout the chamber.

Lub-dub.

Sakura tried pushing her body upwards from the side position she was lying in with all of her might, but the only thing she could manage was forcing her body to sit straight up against the wall behind her back.

Lub-dub.

Even then she was slightly hunched over from the pain in her torso. She wrapped her arms completely around her, as if pressure would cause the pain to go away. However, fear quickly began to course through her as she and Kabuto never released eye contact.

Lub-dub. Lub-dub.

Her angered look turned into a frightened one.

"You're so gullible," he started off. "Now that you're in your second stage curse mark, I don't even need to perform a ceremony," he continued. "My chakra is currently mixed in with yours; now it will be easier to link our two chakras together! You've basically dug up your own grave!" he began to giggle.

Lub-dub. Lub-dub.

"Why else do you think I gave you the curse mark, hm?! For strength against me? Oh, how idiotic you are!" he said as his quiet cackle cultivated into a larger one. She attempted to back up even more, but the wall immobilized her movements.

Lub-dub. Lub-dub. Lub-dub. Lub-dub.

"Don't worry; I'll take care of your beautiful body," he said before his laugh rang throughout her ears. She sat there, frozen in place. Now, he was standing directly above her as hands grew out of his torso while they simultaneously shed a layer of skin. Purple, dark chakra swirled around his right hand before it began to slowly reach out for her.

Lub-dub. Lub-dub. Lub-dub. Lub-dub. Lub-dub. Lub-dub. Lub-dub. Lub-dub.

He clutched her forehead, and the chakra immediately turned black.

"Jinshin Shuuzen no Jutsu!"

Her heart immediately stopped.

Lub-dub.


End file.
